I Chose You
by MemberOfDumbledoresArmy
Summary: The Next Generation is submitted to a marriage law with a twist. Unbeknownst to the muggle-borns and half-bloods, the purebloods get to choose who they marry. Why did Scorpius choose Rose and will she ever forgive him for doing so?
1. Choices

**A/N: I know. Marriage law fic. Cliché. Overdone. But I couldn't get this idea out of my head. This isn't going to JUST be Rose/Scorpius. It will also be James/OC and Albus/OC. I'll be honest here. I've only ever read one marriage law fic before and it was a Sirius/Hermione story. As Rose/Scorpius is probably my favorite pairing, I wanted to write one about them. I thought it would be an interesting start if Scorpius chose her, even though neither of them fancies the other. Please be brutally honest about this. Give the first chapter a fair shake and give me some honest feedback if you like it or not. **

**Yours,**

**MofDA**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

…

"Weasley."

"Which one?"

"You _know_ which one," the boy laid back on his bed with a satisfied smirk. As if he'd already had sex with the bird when in reality he was just imagining it. Zachary Nott spoke openly to his friends in the seventh year Slytherin boy's dormitory. "I'm going to talk to McGonagall first thing in the morning."

"Not if I beat you to it," Nathan Zabini argued hotly, "you know I've been after her for_ever_."

"You can take her veela cousin. What's her name? Dom?" offered Zachary generously.

"I don't want that blonde bimbo."

"What would you want with Rose anyway?" snapped Rider Selwyn, "you can hardly control your temper as it is, Zabini. Everyone knows Rose likes to argue. You'd probably end up beating her every day."

"Like you wouldn't," Zabini said casually, as if the topic of hitting a woman was of no importance to him at all, and in reality, it wasn't. "I bet she's a real firecracker in bed. All of that fiery red hair and her bossy little attitude," he gave a groan of appreciation.

Scorpius Malfoy listened to the conversation with his back turned toward his dorm mates. He was packing, or pretending to at least. A black t-shirt was balled up and fisted in his hand as he fought for control. He'd never really given the Weaselette much thought, but he couldn't stand the way they were talking about her.

"She wouldn't have sex with you," said Travis Goyle snidely, "at least not willingly."

"She would have to, wouldn't she? It's the _law_. She would be my wife. Do you think I would let my wife get away with not having sex with me?"

The boys all laughed in appreciation. Except Scorpius who felt his anger quickly reaching a boiling point. "Alright," said Goyle in a peace-making sort of tone that didn't fool anyone, "you know the rule anyway. We're supposed to write down three girls. Our first, second, and third choices. Even if all of us put Rose Weasley as our first choice, only one of us would get her and it's not up to us anyway."

"Or it could be none of us," said Zabini stiffly, "what if one of those Scamander idiots fancies her? As much as they don't act like it, they are purebloods."

The boys continued their banter as Scorpius continued to pack. Tomorrow he was going home. Tomorrow he was graduating from Hogwarts. Tomorrow he would submit his three choices to his the Headmistress and hope for the best.

A stiff sheet of parchment lay open on his bed next to him. He felt disgusted even touching it, so he had left it there and was trying hard not to look at it. It read:

_To Whom it May Concern:_

_It has come to the attention of the Ministry of Magic that despite the outcome of the Second Wizard War, there are those in the magical community who still frown upon the mixing for magical and muggle blood. There are still those with strong prejudices living among us. In order to discourage this way of thinking, every single witch and wizard who is of age will be subjected to a new law stating that he/she will be paired with someone of opposite "blood status" to unite in matrimony. _

_Hoping you are well,_

_Mafilda Hopkirk_

Another sheet of parchment lay just below it, with the top corner peeking out. That was the one that had Scorpius more upset than the first. This one read:

_Mr. Scorpius Malfoy,_

_Because you are a "pureblood" wizard, you have been sent an extra sheet of parchment. On this sheet, you are to number it 1., 2., and 3. Choose three witches who are single, of age, and have either 'muggle-born' or 'half-blood' status whom you would wish to spend the rest of your life with. Number 1. is obviously your first choice, number 2. your second, and 3. your third. As you are still a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, please submit your completed form to Headmistress Minerva McGonagall who will in turn give it to the Ministry of Magic so you may be paired with someone who is hopefully of your choosing. _

_Sincerely,_

_Mafilda Hopkirk_

From what Scorpius had heard from his father, and others, the half-bloods and muggle-borns had no idea about this part of the law. Because of the outrage from the 'pureblood' community, they were granted the right to partially choose their husband or wife. It seemed several boys in his year were going to put Rose Weasley as their first choice.

With a scowl, Scorpius threw his shirt into his trunk. He knew Rose better than the other boys in his dorm, although they'd never been particularly close. They were both Prefects and often did rounds together and worked on projects together. She was so bloody smart it astounded him. Stubborn as a Hippogriff, too.

To imagine her with a wizard like Zabini or Nott made his stomach turn. They would break her. The boys were now extinguishing the torches on the walls and climbing, for the last time, into their four-poster beds. Scorpius flicked his wand at the parchments, burning them into ashes, all except the one that he was supposed to return to Minerva McGonagall. So far his parchment looked like this:

_Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy_

_1._

_2._

_3. _

He moved it onto his bedside table and flopped onto his stomach on the mattress. His father had attempted to pay an ungodly amount of gold to the Ministry to get his son exempted from this law, but it hadn't worked.

Scorpius lay awake for a long time worrying. He was supposed to turn in the parchment first thing in the morning but so far it was blank. He didn't fancy anyone. Not even any pureblood girls. Let alone love one enough to request to marry her.

Again, his thoughts strayed to poor Rose Weasley. Perhaps one of the Scamander twins would request her hand and win. He knew that was unlikely. One of them was dating Lucy Weasley and the other was very obviously smitten by Rebecca Creevey.

Finally, he reached his conclusion. He pulled out an ink well and quill from his packed trunk, and scribbled on the parchment on his bedside table. He nodded at it in satisfaction and flopped back down onto his bed, finally being able to sleep. It now read:

_Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy_

_Rose Nymphadora Weasley_

_Rose Nymphadora Weasley_

_Rose Nymphadora Weasley_

….

The seventh year Gryffindor girl's dormitory was mostly asleep. Rose Weasley sat curled up in her bed, holding her weeping fifth year cousin, Lily Luna Potter. "Shhh," Rose soothed, "it's okay, Lily."

"No," sobbed Lily, "it's not! I'm not of age! I'm only fifteen. Vin is seventeen, Rose. He's going to be married off to someone else and there's nothing I can do to stop it!" Vincent Longbottom was Lily's boyfriend of nearly three years. Everyone knew how in love they were and their parents were ecstatic about the match, having been friends since their own years at Hogwarts.

Vincent Longbottom, however, was a pureblood, his parents being Neville Longbottom and Hannah Abbott. Rose hoped desperately that whatever the Ministry did in their infinite wisdom (heavy sarcasm in Rose's mind), they didn't pair Rose up with Vincent Longbottom. Hopefully not any of her other cousins either. It would kill Lily to have to watch the love of her life marry someone in her family.

Rose, however, had much more reason to worry than Lily. Hopefully by the time Lily was of age this absurd law will be overthrown. Rose Weasley was the brightest witch Hogwarts had seen since her mother and she knew that people who were supporting this law were rushing it through. There was no hope of her getting out of this, she had heard there was even going to be a deadline all couples had to be married by.

But there was also a good amount of witches and wizards who were vehemently opposed to the law, and in all reality, it would probably be overthrown before Lily turned seventeen. The unfortunate part, of course, was that there was no such thing as divorce in the Wizard World. If you married, it was forever. Magical ceremonies were so different from muggle ones it sometimes astounded Rose. There were immense amounts of deep ancient magic performed at weddings to bond the husband and wife in a myriad of ways.

Who would the Ministry choose for her? Did they even think about the decisions or did they just randomly draw names? Merlin, she hoped she didn't get paired with an 80 year old wizard. She wouldn't be able to go through with it. She would run away, become a fugitive, and never see her family ever again. And they would understand. But she still couldn't bring herself to consider that as a viable option.

Despite fierce efforts, silent tears leaked out of her eyes as she hugged her cousin even tighter.

…..

"Come in," Minerva McGonagall was busily shuffling through the stack of parchment on her desk. Unbeknownst by the muggle-borns and half-bloods, the purebloods had flocked to the Headmistress's office just after breakfast that morning and assailed her with their parchments. A few even tried to pay her to make sure they got the person who was their first choice.

Now she was re-counting them because it appeared that she was missing one. Then there had been a knock on her door. Scorpius Malfoy entered, looking entirely unsure of how he got there. "Good morning, Headmistress," he said politely; shyly.

Minerva McGonagall had always done her best to not show favoritism, but Scorpius Malfoy had always been one of her favorites. Nothing like his father. He was polite, shy, and quite frankly she had no idea how he ended up in Slytherin at all.

"Can I help you, Mr. Malfoy?" she asked with a smile.

"I'm here about the, um, you know, law," he waved a hand.

"Ah, yes, I'm assuming your request is the one I am missing?" she motioned to the others stacked on her desk.

"Yes, Ma'm." He held out his parchment to her and she took it before glancing it over with raised eyebrows.

"I think, perhaps, you misunderstood the-"

"I understood perfectly," he interrupted smoothly, "but I will not take any other witch as my wife and that's final."

McGonagall sighed, "Mr. Malfoy, three of your classmates have already put Ms. Rose Weasley as their first choices. That's not even counting other possible wizards who have already graduated and left Hogwarts who are currently giving the Ministry their requests."

"You don't understand," said Scorpius evenly, "Please, Professor," he was begging, there was a pleading tone in his voice she'd never heard there before and it definitely caught her attention. He looked like he was having an internal battle before the words spilled out in a rush, "You didn't hear the conversations my dorm mates were having about her. I'll be damned if I let that poor girl be married off to one of them."

For just a moment, Scorpius could have sworn that a look of triumph blazed in the old woman's eyes, but then it was gone before he could be sure of what he saw. In truth, Headmistress McGonagall had been trying to get those two together for ages. Both so intelligent and sweet, even if Rose didn't often come off that way at first. She had purposefully teamed them up for many Prefects projects but nothing had come of it.

"I see," her lips thinned. "What were they saying?"

"They only wanted her for her body," said Scorpius dismissively, "they talked about her like she would be a possession belonging to them. One in particular as good as said that he would beat her."

The Headmistress jumped to her feet, "This is exactly what I was worried about with this damned law! The Ministry is trying so hard to not be prejudiced that they have swung from one extreme to another. Instead of finding some sort of balance, those imbeciles have gone off the deep end in the other direction."

Scorpius snorted and tried to cover it with a cough, "I agree, Professor," he said with a polite nod.

"Very well," she said, "I happen to respect you very much, Mr. Malfoy, and I will see what I can do about this situation."

"Thank you, Headmistress," he nodded to her again and retreated from her office. Minerva McGonagall immediately began scribbling a message down for the Minister of Magic.

….

"James!" Ginny Potter yelled up the stairs for her eldest son, who was still sleeping despite the fact that it was well past noon.

He had graduated from Hogwarts a year before and was now the star Chaser for the Puddlemere United Quidditch team. His dream was to play for England and Ginny knew he would get there. James rolled out of bed and tousled his hair before jogging down the staircase looking disheveled.

"Where's the fire, Mum?" he asked groggily.

"It's almost three o'clock, James. Merlin, you would think that you were a vampire instead of a wizard," she reprimanded. But there wasn't any venom in her words. James Potter would always be his Mum's 'little boy' and they had a special bond.

"Well, we won the match yesterday," he began to explain, "so Fred suggested that we go out for drinks to celebrate, but on the way to the pub we ran into a few blokes from the other team. They said we only won because their replacement Beater had to fill in for their regular Beater because he was sick. Rick suggested a rematch and this time we would play with only one Beater on each team, to make it fair, you see. So-"

Ginny held up a hand to silence him and James immediately stopped talking. "Your letter came," she said quietly. His face fell. He knew exactly what letter she was talking about. The letter that would tell him who he would be stuck with for the rest of his life.

"Who's the lucky bird?" he tried for humor, but his soft chuckle didn't reach his eyes as he took the envelope from his mum and tore at the edge. "Do you think," he mused, "if I didn't open it, it wouldn't be real? If I ignore it, it will just go away."

"That's certainly not how it worked when you had Dragonpox," teased Albus as he came into the kitchen holding his own unopened letter. Hogwarts graduation had just been a week previously, and Albus had immediately moved into a flat in London with his cousin Rose. He said he couldn't jump from living at home to living with a wife. He insisted on having a transitional period. Rose had agreed.

As if on cue, Rose appeared behind Albus, both of them having obviously just used the Floo to enter the Potter home. She hadn't opened her letter yet either. "You know," she said, "there can't possibly be an even number of single wizards and witches subjected to this law. Logically, there must be _some_ lucky people who escaped this simply because everyone else has been paired off."

"Like they would let us get off the hook," James grumbled, "we're members of the most popular family in the Wizard World. They'd make sure that we were included because we'll be the ones in the spotlight through this whole fiasco."

They all turned their attention back to their envelopes. "Together?" asked Al nervously.

"Nope, I'm opening mine first!" James tore into his envelope and extracted the parchment from within. Everyone in the room watched him with bated breath. He read through the letter with his eyebrows drawn together before breaking into a big grin and giving a quick laugh of relief. "Well, this isn't so bad!"

"Who is it?" asked Ginny, who was nervously wringing a dishtowel in her hands.

"Leila Scamander," his voice was so full of relief that his family smiled with him, truly happy for him. Even though James had never had a serious girlfriend, Leila and James had always been very good friends.

"Oh!" squeaked Ginny, "I can't wait to get with Luna to discuss all of the wedding plans! Go on, Albus, you next," she encouraged her second son.

Al grimaced before opening his letter and letting it unfold. His jaw dropped open and his facial expression didn't give away any emotion. "Well?" snapped Rose.

"Norah Zabini," his face paled, "they can't be _serious_? I've never even spoken to the girl!"

"Wasn't she in Slytherin?" asked Ginny nervously, recognizing the surname.

"No," answered Rose, "her brother was, though. Norah was a Hufflepuff."

"Rose?" Albus nudged her encouragingly.

With a shaky deep breath, Rose tore open the envelope and read through each word carefully before letting her eyes fall on the name in bold at the bottom.

_**Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy**_

Before anyone could ask her who she was going to marry, a distraction appeared in the form of a screaming Lily Potter. She was shrieking without saying any actual words, but as she came running down the stairs her face was absolutely jubilant.

"What is it, dear?" asked Ginny anxiously.

"Vin!" she screamed, happy tears now streaking down her flushed cheeks, "I just got a letter from him! The Ministry decided that he can wait for me to turn seventeen! They said they had more wizards than witches anyway, and since he plans on marrying me, a half-blood, some day anyway, they'll let him wait for me! Oh, Mum, I'm so happy," Lily was so happy she couldn't speak anymore as she burst into tears.

Ginny hugged her, also in tears, and Rose made her escape. Without anyone noticing, she retreated to the fireplace and disappeared in a swirl of green flames.

…..


	2. Tell Me About Yourself

**A/N: Okay, so a few days ago my laptop crashed. I don't know what happened but it wasn't working and all of my hard work was gone. Today, I took it to a computer repair shop and ta-da! It's back! With all of my work! Let's hope this time it keeps working! Please let me know what you think of chapter two!**

…

Scorpius Malfoy had warned his family when he had first arrived home from Hogwarts. They knew of the law, of course. They also knew that, as a pureblood, Scorpius would be able to partially choose his wife. After graduation, the three Malfoys went out for dinner at a nice restaurant in France to celebrate and then back to Malfoy Manor.

"You turned in your request form to Minerva today?" Draco asked as he poured himself a glass of wine in his study. Scorpius sat in an armchair by the fireplace, with his mother standing beside him, both of them already had drinks in their hands.

"I did," Scorpius confirmed.

Astoria smiled happily while Draco frowned, "Who did you choose?" Astoria asked with excitement.

"I might not get any witch on my list," said Scorpius evasively.

"Well, yes, we know, but it's likely that you will. Malfoys are very prominent in the Wizarding community and your request won't be taken lightly," Draco didn't say this with arrogance, he stated it like it was just a fact.

"I suppose you should be prepared then," Scorpius got to his feet nervously and finally got the words out, "I put Rose Weasley down."

"Who else?" prompted his mother.

"Just Rose Weasley. As all three options, I put Rose's name."

Draco's expression could only be described as hysterical. His face twisted into an expression of horror and disgust. But there was no malice in it, just shock and repulsion. "Why?" he demanded.

"I couldn't think of anyone better," said Scorpius sincerely.

Astoria was beaming happily, "Oh that's so exciting! Who are her parents? Which one is she? There are so many Weasley's it's hard to keep track."

"She's the pretty one," said Scorpius slowly, "Who gave the speech at graduation tonight. Her parents are Ron and Hermione Weasley."

"Oh! She was pretty," said Astoria, "her hair is a deep shade of red unlike the bright orange of most of her cousins. Ron and Hermione you say? Well, with parents like that I'm sure many wizards requested her, if for no other reason than the popularity and social standing she has to offer."

"That," growled Scorpius, "was the problem. I heard how blokes were talking about her. They didn't care about _her_, just what a marriage with her would have to offer them. I don't know Rose very well," he admitted, "but I know her well enough to know that she's genuinely a good person and she doesn't deserve a husband who won't treat her right."

"That's my boy," said Astoria with pride.

"Dad? Say something," Scorpius urged.

Draco made a show of swallowing the lump in his throat before clearing it and saying, "I absolutely abhor the idea of being related to The Weasel. But if you want his daughter, then I hope she is the one you get."

Scorpius, glad of his parent's semi-approval, nodded to each of them, set his glass of scotch on his father's desk, and went up to his bedroom.

His letter arrived a week later. The three Malfoys were seated at the dinner table when a house elf came bobbing in and handed him the letter. Scorpius turned it over and over in his hands and set it aside without opening it. "Scorpius?" his mother was practically vibrating with excitement. Unlike most parents, Astoria was excited about this, she had always wanted a daughter to fawn over and more importantly, she wanted to see her son loved and taken care of.

With a sigh, Scorpius tore open the envelope and pulled out the parchment within. He didn't read any of the letter except for the name in bold at the bottom.

**Rose Nymphadora Weasley**

He jumped to his feet and beamed at his parents, "It's Rose," he announced.

…

Rose Weasley had only been to Malfoy Manor once. When she and Scorpius had been paired up by Professor McGonagall to work on a project together over the Christmas Holidays in sixth year. But once was enough for her to be able to Apparate there.

With a _crack!_ she found herself at the front gates. She could have, of course, used the Floo Network to go directly into their home, but that was quite a rude thing for a witch or wizard to do without first announcing their visit. Now the only question was how was she supposed to get past the large wrought iron gates?

She squared her shoulders, tossed her hair back and brought up her hand. Soon, too soon, this would be her home. Better get used to it now. Her hand pressed against the lock and the gates swung magically open. Satisfied with this, she marched up the path straight toward the large front doors.

Merlin, how much room did three wizards need? This mansion was beyond ridiculous. Would they hear her if she knocked? Why didn't they have a doorbell? Grumpily, Rose fisted her hand and positively pounded on the door.

After just a few moments, the door opened and a tiny house elf stood before her. "Hullo, Miss," squeaked the feminine voice of the elf, "You must be Rose Weasley, you is."

"Yes," said Rose with a smile, she'd always been exceptionally fond of house elves. "Is Scorpius home?"

"He is," said the house elf, "Master Scorpius is expecting you in the south sitting room."

"He's expecting me?"

"Yes, Miss, you coming through the gates alerted us to your presence."

"Of bloody course," grumbled Rose. Of course they would have enchantments all over the damned place. Pureblood prats. She followed the bobbing house elf through a series of complicated turns before finding Scorpius. His back was facing her, he was looking out a large window up at the sky. Torches along the walls were all lit, even though it was still early evening so the sun provided plenty of light through the large windows surrounding the room.

"Rose Weasley is here, Master," said the house elf.

"Mistress," Scorpius corrected, "Rose is to be my wife and you are to call her, 'Mistress Rose.'"

Rose's temper flared at this, "She can call me whatever the hell she wants, Malfoy," Rose turned to the house elf who was looking up at her with large round eyes, her bat-like ears perked up with interest. "What's your name?"

"My name is Rin, Mistress."

"Rin?" repeated Rose. That was unlike any other house elf name she had ever heard.

"Master Scorpius named me, Mistress Rose, when he was only two years old."

"Oh, that explains it," said Rose with a small smirk at the thought of a two year old Scorpius being unable to pronounce much. "Well, Rin, you can call me whatever you fancy calling me."

The house elf looked nervously toward Scorpius who simply raised his eyebrows at the elf. "I will be calling you Mistress Rose."

"Alright, but only because that's what you want to call me." Rin nodded her head vigorously, gave a curtsy, and left.

"Well," Scorpius said, "To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"

"I think we both know what this is about, Scorpius," Rose held up the letter she had received from the Ministry. "Apparently they decided that you and I would be an ideal couple. I, however, remain unconvinced. I barely know you."

Scorpius's lips thinned just a bit. This was why he hadn't wanted Rose with anyone else. That fiery temper and attitude would not be tolerated by any of the other boys who had requested her. Already she had tried to overthrow his orders to his house elf and was acting like a selfish brat. As far as she knew, he hadn't wanted this anymore than she did. "Then perhaps we should get to know each other," he added gently, motioning for her to sit on the sofa.

Rose hesitated. She hadn't expected Scorpius to be so mature about this. With a snort, she sat down, crossing her legs and arms defensively. "What did you have in mind?" Rose asked shortly. She would show him! If he could be mature about this, then so could she.

"Well, I was thinking we could talk," he said with a smirk.

Rose scowled, "About what exactly?"

"Each other," he offered, "our interests, our families, or if you prefer to be all business about this, then we could discuss any ideas you have for a wedding or a wedding date."

Her eyes widened, "Didn't you read that bloody parchment they sent?"

"No," he said without a trace of guilt, "I just saw your name on the bottom. I figured you would read it thoroughly enough for the both of us."

Rose wasn't sure if this was a jibe or a compliment, so she continued on as if he hadn't spoken, "They set the date for us already. We are to be married one month from tomorrow. The date is July 21st. I think that I'll just leave all of the arrangements up to my mum," she concluded, "I honestly don't have any input on the subject and I trust my mum to know what I like."

"What about my mother?" Scorpius asked, "She's very excited about this, you know."

"She is?"

"You wouldn't believe it," he chuckled, "I was surprised myself, but she is practically beside herself with excitement. She wants to be involved, Rose, and she's simply dying to meet you properly."

Rose couldn't help but smile a bit when she heard this. Astoria Malfoy wanted to meet her. She was excited that Rose was going to be her daughter-in-law. "I'm afraid my parents probably won't react with the same amount of enthusiasm as your mum apparently has."

"What do you mean 'probably'? Haven't you told them yet?"

"No, I haven't. I came straight here after opening the letter."

"Weren't they with you when it came?"

"I don't live at home anymore," she told him, "I moved into a flat with my cousin, Albus. We got our letters together and went to his family's home to open them. I didn't tell anyone what mine said, I had to talk to with you first. Just to make sure this is real, I guess."

For the first time since her arrival, she was showing just how nervous she truly was. Her teeth were worrying her bottom lip and she kept wringing her hands together in her lap. Scorpius sat down next to her, "Yes, it's real and actually happening. Now, since we're going to be together for, well, ever, I don't want either of us to spend the next several decades unhappy. Let's get to know each other, okay? What's your favorite colour?"

Rose laughed, "Green," she answered immediately.

"Your favorite flavour of ice cream?"

"Mint."

"Your favorite hobby?"

"Reading."

"Which side of the bed do you sleep on?"

"Scorpius!"

"Well that's a kind of important one to know, because I'm a left side of the bed man, myself."

"It doesn't matter to me," she was blushing now and trying to hide it. Scorpius tactfully pretended not to notice.

"Scorpius?" It seemed that Astoria Malfoy couldn't wait to meet the woman who would be marrying her son. She was standing in the doorway, looking timid but determined. "May I come in?"

"Of course, Mum," he said at once, "Mum, this is Rose," Rose stood up at the sound of her name and turned toward the woman who had entered. Astoria Malfoy was tall, thin, and beautiful. She had blonde hair that wasn't the Malfoy white-blonde, but a gorgeous golden blonde that seemed to shimmer in the light from the torches. She had blue eyes that were the same as her son's and she moved with elegance that Rose thought she could never pull off herself.

Just as she was appraising Mrs. Malfoy, Mrs. Malfoy was appraising her. Rose Weasley's hair was a darker and richer shade of red than Weasley orange. She also had blue eyes but they were an ocean blue colour compared to the light sky blue Scorpius had. She was average height and while she was thin she still managed to have nice curves. A perfect hourglass figure, Astoria noticed.

Without any hesitation, Astoria pulled Rose in for a hug. Caught off guard, it took Rose a moment before she returned the embrace. "It's wonderful to meet you," Astoria gushed, "I know you have a lot to discuss with my son, and I didn't mean to interrupt, but I simply had to introduce myself. I'm Astoria, as you probably figured out. You can call me whatever you fancy; Mum, Astoria, Mrs. Malfoy, anything that you're comfortable with, dear."

"Thank you, Mrs. Malfoy, you have a lovely home," Rose was partially lying. She, personally, felt that while the Manor was gorgeous, it was just way too much.

"Thank you," Astoria was beaming, "I know it's a bit large, but this home has been in the Malfoy family for centuries and Draco couldn't bring himself to leave. I told him we would just have to fill up all of the empty rooms with children, but I had a lot of trouble carrying Scorpius, and I couldn't have anymore after him."

"Mum," Scorpius warned that she was revealing too much, "Rose doesn't want to hear about that."

"Of course," said Astoria quickly, "but that just means that we'll hopefully be able to fill up the empty rooms with grandchildren instead!"

Rose's face paled. Astoria didn't seem to notice. She swiftly kissed Rose on the cheek and bade them both goodbye before she swept regally from the room. "I'm sorry about her," said Scorpius, "Don't dwell on what she said. My mum is the type who likes to make decisions, but don't worry, I won't let her make any for us. Children is something we'll discuss together."

He wasn't sure if he had said the right things to make her feel better or not, but he figured he must have said something good because Rose managed to give him a small smile while wrapping her arms around her tiny waist. "I didn't plan on getting married for a long time," she said, "this is just all so surreal to me."

"We'll get through it together."

…

Things in the Potter home were still a bit chaotic. James was talking animatedly about his extravagant plans for his wedding. Albus was pale as chalk and could barely bring himself to speak as he was so nervous. Lily was squealing with delight and kept reading Vin's letter out loud over and over again to anyone who would listen. Ginny humored each of her children in turn while preparing dinner.

Then Teddy Lupin came in. Already happily married to Victoire for the past few years, he wasn't subjected to this law. He simply came to see what was happening with his family. Because the Potters were his family in every way that mattered.

You could count on Teddy to bring chaos to any situation. He was constantly changing his features with his Metamorphamagus powers and wielding the exuberance he'd inherited from his mother. Then Leila Scamander showed up. This wasn't abnormal by any means, as Leila often popped into the Potter home at least every other day.

However, this time was different because she didn't arrive to see her best friend, James, she came to see her fiancé, James. When they saw each other, James and Leila linked hands and started jumping up and down like school children. "Have you thought about the wedding?" he asked.

"Not yet," she yelled, "have you?"

"Yes!" James was yelling, too, "I want my Uncle Charlie to bring dragons from Romania, and I want the best fireworks Uncle George has, and I was thinking we could have all of the invitations explode when they're opened! But not like a dangerous explosion, just with lots of confetti and noise makers. Then, we could ask all of the guests to wear costumes and have a masquerade ball for our reception. What do you think of flying away from the reception on a Hippogriff?"

"James!" Ginny groaned at hearing the words her son was saying.

"What?" asked James innocently, "I considered flying off on a dragon, but I didn't want to look like I was copying dad's famous move."

"Yes, because escaping Gringotts on the back of a dragon is your father's finest accomplishment," Ginny teased.

"I knew it! He just tells the press that it was his defeat of Voldemort, but really, it was the dragon."

Ginny slapped a hand on her forehead in exasperation. "Whatever you want for the wedding," said Leila with a giggle, "is fine with me, James. Don't let your mum discourage your dreams!"

"_Our _dreams now, my dear fiancé!"

James promptly hoisted Leila up over his shoulder and they ran out of the house screaming something about playing Quidditch. "Dear Merlin," said Teddy with wide scared eyes after they'd left, "I dread seeing what their children will be like."

Everyone laughed. "Why do you think Rose took off so fast?" asked Lily.

"It must have had to do with her letter," said Albus, who seemed to have finally found his voice. "I feel like a prat now. I should have asked her before she left. I was too caught up in my own soon-to-be wife. Do you reckon she went back to our flat?"

"Probably not," said Ginny, "knowing Rose she stormed off to the Ministry to demand a different bloke."

"Nah," corrected Teddy, "Rose probably went immediately to find the bloke and murder him. No husband, no wedding, right?"

He winked and smirked but Albus was momentarily worried that perhaps Rose had gone to do just that.

…..

Hoping that Rose had gone home, Albus said goodbye to his family and left. To his dismay, the flat was empty aside from himself. With nothing else to do, Albus sat down at his desk and pulled out a sheet of fresh parchment. After many failed attempts, he finally managed to find the right words.

_Dear Norah,_

_This is Albus Potter. I received my letter today from the Ministry and it seems that you are to be my bride. I know this is probably just as big of a shock to you as it is to me. I mean, I don't think we've ever even had a conversation. _

_I would really like to meet up with you soon and talk about things. I'm not sure where you live or where it would be convenient for you to meet me. Here are just a few options off the top of my head: we could meet up in Diagon Alley, or I could meet you at your home, or you could meet me at my home. If you have any better ideas, please let me know. I'm willing to meet you anywhere you want. _

_Sincerely,_

_Albus S. Potter_

He nodded in approval after re-reading his letter and sent it off with his mother's owl.

….

Norah Zabini smiled as she touched the words on the parchment. Albus wanted to meet up with her. He was concerned about how she was feeling about all of this. She felt like a weight was being lifted off of her shoulders and all of her dreams were coming true.

Norah Zabini had been raised in a tradition pureblood home with her twin brother, Nathan. While Nathan thrived in this environment, Norah, oppositely, had wilted. Her father was one of the most horrible people she'd ever known. He was an angry drunk most of the time. He often came home from work at the Ministry, hit her mother, her brother, and herself. Then disappeared for the night, usually with some other woman.

Nathan learned from his father's example and usually mimicked it. More than once he'd hit his own sister. The first time was when they were eleven years old. Upon arriving at Hogwarts their first year, Nathan had been sorted first, into Slytherin, of course, then it had been Norah's turn. To the shock of everyone in the Great Hall, Norah Zabini became the first Hatstall since Professor Flitwick.

They had argued, mentally, for nearly eight minutes. The Sorting Hat prevailed and announced to the Great Hall that Norah Zabini was to be a Hufflepuff. After the Feast, her brother had pulled her aside to yell at her for disgracing their name and pureblood heritage. Then he'd smacked her. The sound still resounded in her nightmares as it echoed off of the stone walls.

She didn't make a single friend her first night. Instead, she'd barricaded herself immediately into her four-poster bed and cried herself to sleep. The following morning, her first class ever, was Transfiguration with the Gryffindors. Albus Potter caught her attention immediately. Not because she'd seen him numerous times in _The Daily Prophet_, not because he was famous or because she'd grown up hearing his name. No, she noticed him because of his personality.

Kind, quiet, shy, like Norah herself, but there was more. He gave off a feeling of confidence and belonging. He looked well cared for, loved, and Norah was jealous. She wanted a life like that. She wished, more than anything, that she had parents like Harry and Ginny Potter. She wished that her family looked after her and loved her and cared for her.

They never spoke until Third Year. She was sure he didn't remember it, but she would think of it every day for the rest of her time at Hogwarts. It had happened while she was walking from her dormitory to Ancient Runes class. Her brother spotted her walking with group of her Hufflepuff friends. He and his Slytherin cronies, Nott and Selwyn, ambushed them. Tore their bags, books and ink spilling everywhere, called them names, Nott even managed to chop off a chunk of Lucy Weasley's hair.

That was when Albus came around the corner with a couple of his mates. They'd rescued Norah, Lucy, and two of their other dorm mates. With shaking hands, Norah had begun to collect her things. Albus knelt beside her, scooping up a handful of quills, and said, "I'm sorry about what happened. Don't pay any attention to those gits. Hufflepuff is an excellent house to be in. My god-brother, Teddy Lupin, he was a Hufflepuff and he's brave."

Norah had stared at Albus with wide shocked eyes. "Thank you," was all she had said in return. From that day forward, she noticed Albus Potter every day. She wasn't sure if she fancied him or if she was just envious of his life or perhaps she just wanted to get to know him better. He was a fascinating bloke.

When the new law went into effect Albus was the first person who'd come to her mind. In a way, he'd always been her image of her very own knight in shining armor. Never, in her wildest dreams, did she think she would get him. There was no way of knowing how many girls requested Albus Potter as their first choice, but she was sure it was a high number. But she'd been the lucky one.

Clutching the letter from her husband-to-be to her chest, for the first time in her life, when she looked toward her future, she felt hopeful.

….

Albus Potter was awoken the following morning by an owl taping repeatedly on his bedroom window. He groped along his bedside table for his glasses, shoved them onto his face as he sat up and scratched the back of his head. He'd fallen asleep in his clothes the previous night. Truthfully, he'd been unable to sleep so he attempted to wait up for Rose, but in the end he must have dozed off while reading one of those ridiculous muggle romance novels Rose loved so much.

The owl was one he didn't recognize. Tenderly, he untied the letter from it's leg and unrolled it.

_Albus,_

_I would like to meet with you as soon as possible. I work in Diagon Alley, at Ollivander's Wand Shop every day except for Sundays. Please stop by whenever you get the opportunity. I hope that you and your family are doing well and I do look forward to meeting with you. _

_Sincerely,_

_Norah Zabini_

Albus felt a twist in his stomach at reading those words. They addressed each other so formerly; like strangers. That, of course, is because they were strangers. As much as he was afraid to meet with her, he also felt a bit giddy. How should he dress? Should he bring her flowers?

Those were just two of many questions and worries that were plaguing him while he showered and got dressed for the day. He decided to dress casually. After all, he was just going to Diagon Alley. To meet his fiancé. With a groan he pulled on a pair of plain black slacks and a white t-shirt. Over that, he pulled a very light blue robe. Normally he wouldn't wear Wizard's Robes, he very much preferred muggle dress, but his fiancé was a pureblood and pureblood wizards tended to look down on muggle attire.

If he were being honest with himself, he would have admitted that he wanted to impress her. If they were going to be spending the rest of their lives together, he wanted to do everything in his power to make her happy and he hoped very much that she felt the same way.

Before he left the flat, he peeked into Rose's bedroom to make sure she was there. She was, curled up under the yellow duvet of her queen sized bed, sleeping peacefully on her back with her wildly untamed red hair fanned out around her heart-shaped face. Al smiled as he watched her sleep. Rose was like a sister to him and he felt like her protector. He hoped that she hadn't spent the night before getting drunk in Hogsmeade to wash away her sorrows. Again, he felt like a prat for not having asked who she was now engaged to, but that would have to wait until later.

He used the Floo to reach Diagon Alley and stopped by the florist to pick up a bouquet of wildflowers for Norah. Did she even like flowers? He hoped she wasn't allergic to them. His hand was trembling slightly as he reached for the door of Ollivander's wand shop. When he stepped inside, the dim light made him pause for his eyes to adjust. There she was. With a start, Albus realized that she was pretty. She had dark hair, like his but shinier, and big dark brown eyes. She was small, petite, thin, almost too thin, and her white alabaster skin seemed to glow in the candlelight of the shop.

"Oh!" she squeaked in surprise, "Hullo, Albus." Her cheeks flushed a pleasant pink colour and she glanced down as she spoke, obviously shy.

"Good morning, Norah," Albus smiled at her and was glad to find that it was a genuine smile. She wore witches robes of light green which went well with her dark hair. "When do you get a break?"

"Any time she wants one," said Mr. Ollivaner who had just appeared from behind a stack of boxes. "Good to see you, Mr. Potter," he added as he extended his hand for Albus to shake in greeting. "How's your father doing?"

"Very well, Sir, thank you. And yourself?"

"Oh, I'm doing alright for an old man," he grumbled, "I'll be glad when this girl is capable of taking over full time so I can retire. I've been at this for far too long. I should have retired after the Second War," he laughed good naturedly.

"We'll miss you when you retire," said Al sincerely, as he unconsciously fingered the wand in his pocket which had been made by Ollivander. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to take Norah for some ice cream on this warm spring day."

"Of course, of course, you two lovebirds have a great time!" he waved them out of the shop.

Albus escorted Norah to the ice cream parlor in silence. He kept an arm around her back to guide her gently and was pleasantly surprised when she leaned her body into his just a bit. He hoped she didn't feel too awkward around him.

"I didn't realize you studied wand lore," he commented politely.

Norah was blushing again, "Yes, it's always fascinated me. I've been working with Mr. Ollivander since I entered his shop when I was eleven years old. Every summer he lets me come in and study and work with him. He plans on retiring soon and wants me to take over his work."

"Is that what you want?"

"Well," she hedged, "it was, but then I got engaged," they both gave a small laugh, "Seriously, though. Albus, what do you do? I don't want this whole marriage thing to get in the way of your dreams. If you want to get out of here and study obscure magical creatures in other parts of the world or travel somewhere, then I'll tell Mr. Ollivander that he needs to find someone else."

Her words were so sincere and so self-sacrificing that it caught him off guard. "I couldn't ask you to do that," he shook his head, "Plus you won't have to. I'm Albus Potter, for Merlin's sake! What do you think I'm going to be? An Auror, of course," he said this with pride.

"I'm sure you'll be the best Auror on the force," she told him.

"Perhaps one day," he mused.

"Tell me about yourself," she requested suddenly, "I only know a few basics. Like the fact that your entire family are war heroes and you were a Gryffindor. Oh, also, you were Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch Team."

"Yes, that's all correct. Hmm, what else about me is there to say? I live in a flat not far from here, in muggle London, with my cousin, Rose Weasley, who is my very best friend. I'm starting my Auror training in one month. I have many pets. Two owls, a cat, three Pygmy Puffs, a goldfish, and a niffler. My hair refuses to lie flat on my head, and I dislike muggle romance novels. How about you? Let me see, I know that you were a Hufflepuff. You were good friends with my cousin, Lucy. You have a twin brother who was in Slytherin, and you like wand lore. Tell me some more about yourself."

For a moment she didn't know where to start. She almost started rambling about her awful home life, but thought that might be a bit too personal. She wanted to keep things light with him. After all, this would essentially be his first real impression of her. "Well, for starters, my full name is Norah Alecto Carina Fiona Zabini. My patronus takes the form of a unicorn. I am excellent at brewing potions and I'm terrified of flying."

"Wow," said Al as he put his elbow on the table and set his jaw on his hand, "that's quite a name you've got! I'll have to write that one down. There's nothing to fear from flying, though. Just look at my brother. He's a Chaser for Puddlemere United. He's fallen off his broom loads of times and he's alright. Well okay, maybe that wasn't the best example because my brother's mental health is always a bit up in the air, but he's usually alright." Norah laughed at this and felt herself relaxing in his presence a bit more every second.

As they ate their ice cream they talked casually about other things. He mentioned how his sister's boyfriend was allowed to wait for her to come of age so he could marry her, and she talked of how much she enjoyed working with the First Years as she had been a Prefect. It wasn't long, however, before Rose Weasley appeared.

"Albus! There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Hullo, Rose," said Norah politely.

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt anything. It's lovely to see you, Norah. Congratulations on getting this wonderful bloke," said Rose in a welcoming voice.

"You weren't interrupting anything," Al assured her, "What's going on?"

"I need your help. I want you to come with me when I tell my parents who I'm going to marry," Rose had never been one for beating around the bush. When she had something on her mind, it immediately came right out.

"Of course. Do you think you could wait a bit? I am sort of on a date here…" he trailed off.

"It's fine," said Norah as she stood, "I have to be getting back to work anyway."

"Here, before you go," Albus flourished his wand and the bouquet of flowers that he'd purchased earlier appeared in midair. Norah caught them with ease. "I hope you like them."

"They're beautiful," Norah spoke to Al while looking at the blossoms in her arms. "Thank you so much," bravely, she leaned forward, kissed his cheek swiftly then practically ran back to Ollivanders.

Rose snorted, "Shy, isn't she?"

"That's not always a bad thing you know," he teased, "you might be able to learn something from that girl about humility and manners."

"You wouldn't be in a very good mood if you were me right now either, Albus."

"Why? Where were you last night anyway? And who is the lucky bloke who gets to spend the rest of his miserable life putting up with your sorry arse?"

Rose punched his shoulder, scowled, and finally grumbled, "Scorpius bloody Malfoy."


	3. Arrangements

**A/N: Alright, so my laptop is gone. I'm shopping around for a new one but it will probably be a while. Meanwhile, I have a mac computer but it just isn't the same. I'm having a difficult time working on it and it does not have Microsoft Office so I'm struggling with the weird program it does have. Therefore, I cannot promise regular updates for now. I will do my best, though! As a sort of apology, I'm giving you all a really lengthy chapter 3! **

**Even though there isn't any Scorpius/Rose interaction in this chapter, I loved writing it. Chapter 4 will definitely have a lot of Rose/Scorpius. This chapter is mainly James/Leila. **

**Please leave any comments or criticisms in reviews! I love feedback! I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed creating it. **

**DISCLAIMER: All recognizable characters, ideas, places, events, etc. belong to the brilliant JK Rowling. I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Violence, a bit of language, and light sexual references in this chapter.**

**...**

_James Sirius Potter and Leila Danica Scamander _

_Formerly request the honour of your presence _

_At their marriage ceremony _

_On July 14th _

_Two o'clock in the afternoon _

_The Burrow_

"Bloody hell," groaned Ronald Weasley as the words were shouted at him. He blinked his eyes rapidly as confetti rained down on him and noisemakers assaulted his ears. "How did they get the invitations out so fast?"

"Ginny said they were up all night making their wedding plans," said Hermione as she glanced at the invitation over her husband's shoulder. It was now smoking slightly. "Ah, you might want to get rid of that, dear, just in case it explodes."

Ron snatched up his wand from the kitchen counter and vanished the invitation. "Why haven't we heard from Rose yet?" he asked his wife.

"I don't know," said Hermione with a frown. It was a question they'd both been asking for nearly twenty-four hours. They had heard from almost all of their nieces and nephews immediately. Yet their own daughter hadn't bothered to contact them with news of her fiance.

"Maybe it's really bad," said Ron, his face turning very red very fast, "like someone who is really old."

Hermione wanted to laugh at the expression on his face, but the situation was too serious for her to find anything funny. She had been outraged when this law had come into being. She worked for Magical Law Enforcement for Merlin's sake! You would think she, of all people, would be able to do something about it.

"Well, let's not jump to any conclusions. Look, here's the paper," Hermione motioned to the window where an owl was impatiently waiting to be let in. Ron hurried forward, put some bronze coins into the bag attached to the owl's leg, and took the morning paper.

He unfurled it and immediately the kitchen was filled with the voice of his nephew. "_Good morning people of the wizarding world! Today is your lucky day! You are formerly invited to the wedding of James Sirius Potter and Leila Danica Scamander on July 14th at two o'clock in the afternoon. The ceremony will be performed at The Burrow, with a reception to follow!"_

Hermione groaned, "Did he seriously put an ad for his wedding in _The Daily Prophet_?"

Ron gave a weak chuckle, "It looks like it. Blimey, I hope he cleared that with Mum before inviting thousands of people to her house."

Before Hermione could respond, the kitchen door slammed open and Rose strode into the house. She paced the length of the kitchen three times before finally screaming, "I DON'T WANT TO BE A MALFOY!"

Ron spluttered for a moment, "But-they paired you with Draco? He's already married! They can't do that!"

"Ron!" Hermione scolded, "Don't be an idiot. Of course they didn't pair her with Draco. They paired her with Scorpius!"

"Oh, right," huffed Ron. He had momentarily forgotten that the Ferret had a son. "They still can't do that!" he cried, "...can they?"

"Unfortunately they have," said Hermione as she read over the letter that Rose dropped on the kitchen table. Albus, who had entered the house with Rose, remained quietly in the doorway. "Would you like to come in, Al? I'll make everyone some tea."

"Thanks, Aunt Hermione, but I just came to be moral support," he said bracingly.

"Ah, that's good, I think she'll need it," Ron glanced nervously at his daughter who was still pacing and looking murderous.

"Of course," she snipped, "he's being pathetically polite about the whole thing! Acting like a perfect gentleman. Can you believe that prat?"

"The nerve of him," her family knew it was best to humor her by this point.

"He said that we should get to know each other and make the best of this. Optimistic insensitive git!"

"Insensitive," agreed Albus.

"His mum was dreadful. She hugged me. Isn't that just disgusting? As if she actually likes me or something. Astoria Malfoy. Hugged ME."

"How dare she," patronized Ron.

"THEN," Rose screamed, "he had the audacity to ask me questions about myself!"

"Mmm, rude," said Hermione as she poured a cup of tea for Albus.

"Hmph," Rose, finished with her rant, plopped down onto a chair and stared at the tabletop.

"Would you like some tea, love?" Hermione offered. Rose jerked her head in assent and a cup of tea appeared before her. After she took a few sips she seemed to settle down and Hermione said tentatively, "Rose, you know that if I thought it would help, I would go down to the Ministry right now and demand they change their minds. But we both know they won't. I'm sorry to ask, sweetheart, but are you upset because there was someone else who you were hoping for?"

Rose looked scandalized, "No! I was hoping that there would be more witches than wizards and I wouldn't be paired up with anyone! Daddy, can't you go, oh I don't know, arrest him for something? I can't marry him if he's in prison."

"Rose," her father barely managed to hide his amusement at her request, "I haven't been an Auror since before you were born. I can't arrest anyone. Plus, he sounds like he is being very mature about this. It could have been worse, you know. Your cousin Dominique was paired with Nathan Zabini."

"No!" Rose cried in horror. "Yeah, alright," she assented, "Malfoy is loads better than Zabini."

"See? I always thought Scorpius was a nice boy. You had to work with him before, didn't you? You were both Prefects in the same year."

"Yes, we've worked together," she acknowledged, "and I know he's not that bad. I just don't want to get married at all, Mum. It's just not fair!"

"I know, sweetheart," Hermione gently stroked Rose's unruly hair, "but life is very rarely fair. Now, it says here you have one month to put a wedding together. Do you have any ideas?"

"Yes," said Rose in a tone that made Hermione suspicious, "my idea is that you can take care of everything. I don't care about this wedding. I don't care if you want to have gnomes as my bridesmaids! My only requests are that you ask my opinion on nothing. And I get to choose my dress. That's the only thing I even sort of care about."

Hermione looked shocked but had expected something like this. Rose was twice as stubborn as her father and she was so angry about this whole situation that it wasn't a surprise to Hermione that she was acting like a child. "If that's what you want."

"It is. Oh, by the way, Mrs. Malfoy wants to be involved with wedding plans, too. I told her that you would contact her and the two of you could have some sort of mothers-of-the-bride-and-bloody-groom party or something."

"I'll take care of it," Hermione was already pulling parchment and ink from a cupboard.

"Good, now, if you'll excuse us, Albus and I will be going."

"We will? Where are we going?"

"Back to our flat. I'm bloody hungry. I'll cook something up," she spun and Apparated on the spot, presumably back to her flat.

"Sorry about her, Uncle Ron, Aunt Hermione," said Al with a little smile.

"Quite alright," said Ron, who was reading the newspaper, "we know how Rose is. Gets it from her mum."

Hermione's mouth opened in indignation but before she could even get properly angry she caught the grin on Ron's face and knew he was being sarcastic. "She gets her intelligence from me. Everything else is _all_ you, Ronald."

...

It wasn't abnormal by any means for Leila to stay nights at the Potter home. It was also not abnormal for her to sleep in James's bed with him. If it had been any other girl, Ginny and Harry would never have allowed it. But they knew Leila. They knew that Leila and James had only ever been just friends.

So when Ginny Potter opened her eldest son's bedroom door, it was not a shock to see Leila curled up with him, both of them sleeping soundly, even though it was almost noon. They had been up quite late, after all.

His room was a mess. Clothes everywhere, parchment strewn about, and to Ginny's horror there was a light layer of confetti covering the entire area. Even in their sleep, James and Leila were comical. They were snoring in a pattern and Ginny almost didn't want to wake them. They must be exhausted.

"James, Leila," she whispered, "time to get up, darlings."

Leila bolted upright. "We fell asleep!" she screamed. She clambered on top of her fiance, straddled him, and shook his shoulders hard, "Wake up you big great git! We fell asleep! We still have so much to do!"

Laughing, Ginny withdrew from the bedroom. Twenty minutes later, they were in Diagon Alley. They were in a furniture store registering for gifts. "What do you think of this?" asked Leila as she pointed to an ornate chandelier.

"Hm," James appraised the item, "better make it two."

Leila nodded in approval and flicked her wand at the chandelier twice. Once they were finished registering at the furniture store, they meandered down the alley talking. "Oh, I'm starving," said Leila as she pulled James toward a street vendor who was selling licorice wands and cauldron cakes, "we skipped breakfast."

"Hey, Lei, I was thinking that maybe tomorrow we could go look at houses," said James as he pulled some gold from his pocket and handed it over to pay for the basket that Leila was ladening with sweets.

"Houses?"

"Yeah, unless you'd prefer a flat?"

"Can we afford a house, James? I mean, I've got a decent amount of gold saved up, but-"

"Don't worry about that," interrupted James, "I have plenty of gold to buy a house. Ever since I was big enough to carry boxes I've been working for my Uncle George and Uncle Ron at the joke shop. After Hogwarts I was signed onto Puddlemere United. I live at home, Leila, I don't exactly have a lot of things to spend my paycheck on. I could buy you a house if you wanted it. Hell, I could buy you three houses if you wanted them."

She laughed as she sat down on a bench and tossed him a cauldron cake, "I think we'll only need one house for now." James shrugged unconcernedly and tore into his cake. "But if you have so much money, why haven't you moved out of your parents house before now?"

"I think we both know the answer to that," he sighed, "Why would I want to leave a place where I have my laundry done for me and food made for me? I don't have to pay rent and there's always someone to talk to."

Leila knew better than to take what he said at face value. She knew the truth. James Potter was a social and family oriented person. He liked being around his family and simply didn't want to leave them. He wasn't so lazy that he needed his mummy around to clean his socks, he just liked being at home. If he had his own place, he would never be there.

"I wanted to give you this," he extracted a large ornate key from his pocket and handed it over to her. "I had my Uncle Bill make a copy of the key to my Gringotts Vault last night. He dropped it off with my mum this morning. It's yours. If you want, you can transfer your money into my vault so we have a joint one, or you can keep yours separate. Either way, my gold is your gold now, too, and I reckon you ought to be able to access it."

"Oh, James," she held the key gingerly in her hands like it was a precious treasure. To her, it was. If James had given her all the gold in the vault it wouldn't have meant as much as this key. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." she took a moment to really look at James Potter. He was a perfect blend of his parent's best qualities, in her opinion. He had his father's untamed black hair, his mother's brown eyes, and the tall broad Weasley build with the Potter charm. When Leila Scamander was fifteen years old, she and James had lost their virginity to each other. They had been at her house during the summer before fifth year. James was upset because all of his friends had had sex but he was embarrassed to admit he hadn't because he was nervous about it.

Leila offered to try it with him for their first times. He had agreed. To her immense relief, it hadn't been awkward as she had feared, nor had it been overly painful. It had been sweet and kind of wonderful. Neither of them regretted what they had done, but they didn't speak of it ever again, either. It was their secret. Now she would be the only girl he would ever shag for the rest of his life. Her stomach lurched. Was he upset about that at all? Did he want to have other girls?

Before her mind could send her into a panic, an unexpected voice broke into her thoughts, "My two best friends!" Fred Weasley was standing before them grinning like a fool, "Getting married! Blimey, I bet this is what Uncle Harry felt like when Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione got together. This is strange. But, uh, I guess, congratulations?"

James barked a laugh before hitting his best mate with a licorice wand. "Good to see you, too, Freddy," Leila scooted over and Fred sat down on her other side. The three of them had been inseparable at Hogwarts when they'd been there.

"What's so strange about it?" argued James as Fred leaned over and ate the half-eaten cauldron cake right out of Leila's hand.

"I don't know," said Fred after he swallowed, "maybe the fact that you and Leila will be shagging. Isn't that weird for you two to think about?" he made a face.

Leila and James both pulled innocent faces. "Not really. I mean, I know he's been trying to get into my skirt for years, he just finally gets the chance now," she said casually.

"Oh please, we all know you were the one who's been trying to get into my trousers, Scamander! I don't blame you. Most witches would die to be in your position right now." he tapped her playfully on the nose.

"You're so full of yourself, Potter. I don't know why I agreed to marry you, you arrogant prat!" she teased.

"I don't even know why I asked you," James played along, "what was I thinking when I asked a crazy bird like you to be my wife?"

"You must have been drunk," she conceded, "but not as drunk as I was when I accepted."

Laughing heartily, James got up and said, "I'm going to get a cold bottle of pumpkin juice. Do you two want anything?"

"Gilly water, please," she requested.

"Nothing for me, mate," Fred waved him away and James went on his way down the street to find drinks. "Now," said Fred seriously, "did you tell him yet?"

"No," said Leila, who had the decency to blush pink, "How could I, Fred?" Of all of the Weasley grandchildren, Fred and Roxanne were the only two who were purebloods, children of George Weasley and Angelina Weasley (nee Johnson).

"You need to tell him that you chose him, Lei."

"What if he's disappointed? I bet loads of better looking witches wanted to marry James Potter. Look at me, Fred, I'm not exactly the type of witch you see on the cover of _Witch Weekly_."

Fred looked over his best friend, trying to be objective about it. It was true that Leila wasn't exactly thin. But she definitely wasn't fat, either. So she had a bit of extra hips and boobs, what bloke wouldn't like that? She had beautiful golden blonde hair that reached her waist, and dark green eyes. Out loud he said, "James thinks you are. I see the way he looks at you. The way he has looked at you for years. He looks at you and he likes what he sees. I'm a bloke, we can tell these things. We all have different types, you know. Al likes small mousy girls, Louis likes tall leggy blondes, I prefer brunettes. Then there's James. James's type is Leila Scamander. That's it. There's no way in hell he's disappointed that you are who the Ministry paired him with. I haven't seen him this happy since we won the Quidditch Cup in sixth year."

"You really think so?" Leila asked in a small voice.

Fred put an arm around her shoulders, "Absolutely. Now, tell him that you chose him."

Leila's face fell, "I can't."

Before Fred could argue, James was back. "Bloody hell, there was a long line to buy this," he handed Leila her gilly water, "I hope it's still cold."

"It's perfect," Leila smiled at him, drank her water, then stood up, "I'm going to Gringotts to transfer my gold to your vault, James."

"Brilliant," he said with a smile. He stood, too, then kissed her on the forehead, "I'll see you tonight at your parent's house for dinner, yeah?"

"Yes, I'll see you then. Bye, Fred!"

"Bye, Lei!" and she was gone. "Alright," Fred turned to his cousin with a serious expression, "Now, what is so urgent that I had to rush down here to meet you for? And why are we keeping it a secret from your fiance?"

"I've been thinking," James hedged.

"Oh no," said Fred in mock-horror, "You know you shouldn't do that, James!"

James rolled his eyes, "I know that the Ministry kind of forced us together, but I want to do this right. I want to properly ask Leila to marry me. I want to propose to her properly. I asked you to come down here to help me pick out a ring."

"Really?" Fred was fascinated by this turn of events, "Do you...fancy her?"

"Haven't I always?" James grumbled.

Fred laughed, "Yeah, but you've never admitted it until now."

"If the Ministry had put her with another bloke...I would have gone mental, Fred. I hoped so badly that it was her. If I had been allowed to choose, I would have chosen her."

"I'm sure she would have chosen you, too, mate."

"Enough of this sensitive bloke stuff," James brushed himself off importantly, "and onto much manlier things. Like jewelry shopping."

Fred chuckled, "Yes! To the manliest jewelry shop in Diagon Alley!"

...

Hermione Weasley was not a coward. At least, that's what she kept telling herself as she tapped politely on the tall wrought iron gates of Malfoy Manor. She had owled Astoria and they had agreed to get together that very afternoon to discuss the wedding plans.

Now, Hermione was wishing that she hadn't accepted Astoria's invitation to come here. The mansion wasn't as dreadful as she remembered. Although the last time she'd been here, it had been dark outside and there had been Death Eaters crawling all over the place.

The sunlight glittered off the manor in a beautiful way and the beautiful gardens took up most of the grounds. Hermione could hear a fountain that must be just out of sight around a corner. This place was huge. Much bigger than she remembered.

Trying very hard to stop the trembling in her limbs, Hermione paced herself as she walked up the winding pathway to the large front doors. Astoria Malfoy stood on the grand porch, smiling as Hermione approached. Hermione was seized by an insane urge to turn and run.

"Hermione," Astoria greeted her warmly, "I'm so glad you could make it."

Hermione couldn't bring herself to smile as she replied in a steady voice, "It's lovely to see you, Astoria. How have you been?"

"Excellent, thank you. Rose stopped by here last night, did she tell you? Your daughter is wonderful, Hermione. She was ever so polite and she's absolutely gorgeous."

"Thank you," said Hermione graciously as she was privately relieved that Rose hadn't been a complete brat to these people.

"Please, come in, would you like some tea?"

"Yes, that would be lovely," Hermione followed Astoria into the manor and froze. It was bright, warm, even homey feeling. But there was still a coldness from it that only Hermione could feel. Because it was her nightmares that still lived in this place.

"Ah, Granger," Draco Malfoy was walking swiftly down the grand staircase, "You must be here about the wedding." he grinned wickedly at her, "never thought you'd be in-laws with me, did you?"

"No, Draco, I didn't," she admitted, still distracted by her own feeling of dread at being in this home.

"I expect you'll want to avoid the, ah, room," he said significantly with a dark look in his grey eyes, "so we'll be talking in the south sitting room. This way," he led her through the mansion to a small room with a large roaring fireplace. Hermione sat gingerly on the very edge of the sofa and Draco barely suppressed a laugh.

"How are you handling this?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"Very well, actually," Draco went to a bar in the corner of the room and poured himself a glass of wine. "Would you like a glass?"

"No, thank you, your wife was getting me a cup of tea."

"Ah, alright then. Yes, I am actually handling this much better than the Weasel probably is," he looked to her for affirmation and Hermione couldn't help but scowl just a bit.

"I didn't even tell him I was coming over here," she admitted, "he's been sulking more than Rose."

Draco raised his eyebrows, "Is Rose really that unhappy about this? She seemed perfectly calm and collected while she was here."

Hermione smirked, "She's good at keeping up appearances, but trust me, underneath that facade she is exactly like Ron."

"Oh dear," said Draco as he took a swallow of wine, "we really are in trouble then. You see, Scorpius is...well, like you."

"Me?" Hermione squeaked in surprise.

"Quite," Draco sounded more amused by this than anything, "spends most of the time with his nose in a book, doesn't care about any social events, quiet, thoughtful boy," he shook his head as if he disapproved of these qualities, "annoyingly logical," he tacked on, "stubborn, and...brave."

"Brave?" Hermione's eyebrows disappeared into her bangs.

"The Sorting Hat very nearly put him in Gryffindor. He told Astoria that he had to beg the Hat to put him in Slytherin. He was afraid of disappointing me. I admit, I would have been disappointed, but nothing like what my father would have been."

Hermione stared at him for a long moment, but before she could think of anything to say in reply, Astoria was bustling in with a tray of tea and biscuits. "Here we are," she announced happily, "normally our house-elf would have brought this in, but Draco told me how adamant you are about house-elf rights."

"Yes, I am." Hermione was secretly very pleased that the Malfoys had, thus far, been very considerate of her. She brandished the parchment that she had scribbled a few wedding ideas on and didn't even notice the shock on Astoria's face as the parchment was nearly two feet long.

"Merlin's balls, Granger, that list is appalling in length."

"Weasley," she corrected, "my surname is Weasley now, Malfoy. That's the second time you called me 'Granger' and I won't be so kind if you do so again."

Astoria giggled just a bit at how quickly Hermione put Draco in his place. "I didn't write anything down," Astoria offered, "but I do have a few ideas myself."

The two women immediately went on about what colours would look nice, how many people should be in the wedding party, cake flavours, and so much more while Draco Malfoy dozed off in his chair after only a few minutes of pretending to be interested.

...

"Harry Potter's boy?" Blaise Zabini asked critically as his daughter blushed scarlet and mumbled her response to the floor. "Did you put him down as your first choice?" His calm demeanor and tone did not trick Norah. She knew her father was bubbling with anger just under the surface.

She was standing in the foyer of their large home with an empty owl cage under her arm, a traveling cloak around her shoulders, and a large trunk at her feet that contained all of her possessions. "Yes," she was looking at him firmly in the face now, "I did."

"WHY THE BLOODY HELL WOULD YOU WANT TO MARRY THAT BASTARD?" he threw the wineglass he was holding across the room so that it smashed into the wall behind Norah. The shattered pieces of glass clattered noisily to the floor behind her back as she flinched.

"I'm leaving," Norah had had enough of her family. Quite honestly, she never wanted to see any of them ever again. Mr. Ollivander had agreed to rent the upstairs of the wand shop to her for a very decent price and she made good money working for him. Plus it would only be for about two months, then she would be married to Albus and they would be living together.

"No you're not," Blaise growled. He put his hand firmly on the front door, making sure it stayed closed. "You're going to sit your sorry arse down and tell me what the fuck you were thinking when you wrote down that name."

"I had to pick someone," she told him in slight exasperation.

"Why couldn't you have picked someone like Garrett Stevens? He's a half-blood!" Norah felt sick at that thought. Garrett Stevens was the son of a half-blood wizard named Travis Stevens and pureblood witch Pansy Parkinson. He was a friend of Nathan's and they were very much alike.

"Because," Norah was eighteen years old now. She would stand up to her father. For the first time in her life, she would say exactly what she was thinking, because no matter what happened, she was leaving. "I wanted a husband who would actually be somewhat decent. I didn't want someone who would be as abusive as my father and as destructive as my brother!"

Blaise's reaction was immediate. He brought his hand up and sent it crashing down to connect with her face. Norah let out a pitiful yelp as she skidded across the wooden floor. The owl cage was dislodged from under her arm and crashed into the wall, making a lot of noise but undamaged. "How dare you!"

"You just proved my point," despite the pain radiating from her jaw, her voice was steady as she got shakily to her feet. "I am marrying Albus Potter. I don't want you or Mum or Nathan at the ceremony. I'm leaving now. I'm moving out and I'm done with all of you."

"You're my daughter. You'll do as I say!" he thundered.

"I'm an adult," was her simple reply.

"Get your things and take them back upstairs or Merlin help me I will drag you up there by the hair on your useless head, you pathetic little squib!" In the wizarding world, and even more so in the world of pureblood wizards, it was a hefty insult to call someone a squib. Especially when one was as talented a witch as Norah was.

Calmly, bravely, she extracted her wand from the pocket of her cloak, "Stand aside," she requested. Her father didn't budge. She moved to step forward but found strong fingers latched onto her throat. Before she could panic, she spun her wand around and her father was on the floor, bound in chains from head to foot.

Without a backward glance, Norah plucked up her owl cage, took hold of the handle on her trunk, and left for Diagon Alley. When she arrived at her new flat, she was still frowning but was very proud of herself for not having shed a tear yet.

Trying to distract herself from the events that had just taken place, Norah began to unpack her trunk with magic. The contents of her bedroom from home came soaring out in miniaturized forms and grew to their regular size. Unfortunately, the sitting room and kitchen remained empty. She didn't have any of her own furniture aside from her bedroom things and she didn't have anything that would go in a kitchen.

She let out a sharp breath, blowing her brown bangs out of her eyes and leaned wearily against the counter. Overall, it hadn't been such a bad breakaway from her family. The worst part had been knowing that through the encounter with her father, her mother had stood watching the whole thing unfold without saying a word or lifting a finger to help her daughter.

...

Hermione and Astoria talked their way through several wedding topics before finally landing on the issue of the venue. It was family tradition for couples to be married at The Burrow, although there were a few exceptions. Knowing that the Malfoys would loathe the idea of the wedding being held in such a place, Hermione suggested politely, "When Teddy Lupin married Victoire Weasley, they went to a beautiful muggle cathedral where his grandparents had been married. Andromeda Black and Ted Tonks."

"My son," said Draco, who had been silent through most of the discussion, "will not be wed in any muggle venue. I refuse. There is a wizard wedding hall in France that I think will be perfect. It's very modern, refined, and most importantly, not muggle related."

"Well why not at a place that's important to both of them?" said Hermione, "like Hogwarts. The castle has hosted several weddings over the years. Not to mention it's very steeped in ancient magical history."

"No," said Draco shortly, "Hogwarts isn't just a place for weddings. It's also a school, a graveyard, a battlefield..." he trailed off and Hermione knew that he refused this idea because he didn't want to return to the place himself.

"I know!" said Astoria happily, "they can be married here, at the Manor. This is where Draco and I were wed, and it's a very magical place," Astoria gazed lovingly at her husband but Draco was scowling.

"Honestly," he said, "I would say that's an excellent idea, but look at how pale Granger-er-Weasley is. This place is a nightmare to her."

"Why?" asked Astoria innocently.

Draco opened his mouth to answer, but Hermione beat him to it, "Because when I was supposed to be at Hogwarts for my seventh year of school but instead I was with Harry and Ron trying to defeat Voldemort, I was brought here by Death Eaters. I was tortured and nearly killed by Bellatrix Lestrange in this mansion. While Draco stood by and watched," she added bitterly.

Draco had the decency to blush pink at her words, but his voice was steady when he said, "I wish that I could go back and change that, Hermione. I wish that I would have had a bit of courage that you Gryffindors pride yourselves with so much. But what do you want me to do about it now? I never thought you were worthy of death. I never thought you deserved what Bellatrix did. If anyone deserved such brutal treatment, it was me. We all know that. Overdue though it may be, will you accept my apology?"

Hermione blinked at him for several long moments before nodding curtly, "I suppose I'll have to, won't I? But I still don't want Rose being married here."

Astoria was sniffling quietly, obvious adoration and pride on her face as she gazed at her husband. "Actually," Scorpius Malfoy entered without any of them noticing until he spoke, "I've given it some thought and I would very much like to married at The Burrow."

"What?" Hermione gasped, "How did you even think of the place?"

"Even if you've forgotten, Teddy Lupin is my cousin. I was in attendance at his wedding. He mentioned that most Weasleys were married at The Burrow but the venue he chose was important to him. I'm sure Rose would appreciate it if I made an effort to do things according to her family's traditions."

"That's very thoughtful of you," said Hermione kindly.

"No it's bloody well not," argued Draco, "have you ever seen that place?" he was looking at his son like he'd grown an extra head, "It's positively dreadful. I will not have you married there."

"Good thing it's not your decision then," said Scorpius cheekily, "Mum," he looked to Astoria, "you know that I haven't made any requests with wedding arrangements except for this. I will marry Rose at her family's home; The Burrow. That's my decision."

"I quite agree," Astoria hurried to say, "this is Scorpius's wedding, after all," she reminded her husband, "if he wants something, then that's what we'll do."

Surprised but pleased with this turn of events, Hermione scribbled down 'The Burrow' on her long list of wedding plans and circled it. Now onto floral arrangements.

...

Rose Weasley was lying on her back on the sofa in the sitting room of her spacious flat, with her legs thrown over the arm of the sofa. She wore an apron over her muggle jeans and t-shirt. Flour coated her apron and blotched her face and hair. "It smells like a bakery in here," commented Albus.

"The cakes are in the oven," she announced with obvious pride. One thing that always seemed to calm Rose Weasley down and at the same time make her happy was baking.

As soon as they had arrived home from her parent's house, Albus had disappeared into his bedroom while Rose threw herself into a baking frenzy. There were enormous plates of cookies, donuts, muffins, and pies on the countertop and apparently cake in the oven.

Music was playing on the muggle radio. Aside from cheesy muggle romance novels, Rose was also unashamed to brag about her taste in muggle music. She called them 'boy bands.' Albus, however, called them 'the quickest way to get a headache.'

"Looks like we arrived just in time," James Potter and Fred Weasley came through the front door.

"Godric, don't either of you have the decency to knock before you barge into a place?" Al snapped.

"Your place is my place, little bro," said James unconcernedly as he made his way into the kitchen. Fred followed, both of them knowing by the smell and the state of her clothes that Rose had been busy.

"Donuts!" Both boys cried joyously, just out of sight of Al and Rose. Rose was still lying on the sofa, her arm draped over her face in exhaustion. "Budge up there, cousin," said James as he attempted to shove all of Rose's hair off of the sofa cushion he wanted to sit on.

Rose, however, didn't move until Fred turned off the radio. She scrambled to her feet and rushed to turn it back on but Fred caught her easily around the middle and hauled her up, over his shoulder. "Oh no you don't!" he chided, "James has something very important he wants to show the both of you."

Curious, Rose stopped struggling and Fred set her back on her feet. Rose sat politely next to James, and Albus stood in front of them with his arms crossed over his chest suspiciously. Usually when James wanted to show them something it was dangerous.

"Don't be a prat, it's not going to bite," said James as he pulled something small from the pocket of his robes. "I am going to propose to Leila. What do you think of this ring?" he opened the little black box and Rose gasped.

Of course it was gorgeous. James Potter only bought the best. The ring was silver with little intricate swirls and patterns adorning the band in tiny diamonds. The monstrous diamond on top was circular in shape and sparkled even in the littlest amount of light. "James," gasped Rose, "it's perfect. She'll love it!"

"You're proposing to her?" asked Al as he reached out to take hold of the box and inspect the ring more closely, "are we supposed to do that? Do you reckon Norah is expecting me to get her an engagement ring and get down on one knee and all of that?"

"I don't think so," answered Fred, "I don't plan on proposing to Heather. Although I am going to get her a ring. I think it would be a nice gesture."

"A nice gesture. Pah!" Rose growled, "If Malfoy gets me a ring I'll shove it up his smarmy arse!"

James and Fred both looked surprised for a moment then burst into raucous laughter. "You're marrying Scorpius?"

"Yes, and I'd appreciate it if you two idiots would stop laughing at my misfortune!"

"Misfortune?" mocked Fred, "Scorpius is an alright bloke, Rose. It's just hilarious that you got paired with him."

"How is it hilarious?"

"Well, you're all bossy," said James as he helped himself to a cookie, "and Malfoy is a bit of a pushover isn't he? I mean, I'm sure he must have a backbone because he was in Slytherin, but he's just so...accommodating."

Rose considered this. Logically, she knew he was right. Scorpius was a decent bloke. He had been very accommodating to her despite how revolting he must find their situation as well. However, this thought made her feel a bit guilty for acting like a brat about the whole thing, so she bristled and shied away from it.

"Let's just not talk about it. I'm going to get the cake out of the oven," she got to her feet and went to the kitchen with the boys right behind her yelling, "CAKE!"

"When are you going to propose?" asked Al as the four cousins sat around the small kitchen table eating their weight in sweets.

"I don't know. I reckon whenever the right moment presents itself. I'm eating dinner with her family tonight, so we'll see how that goes. I have three weeks to find the perfect moment. It's bound to happen."

"You're going to eat dinner?" Rose asked, "after you just ate all of this?" she motioned to the piles of goodies around them.

"I'm a growing boy. A growing _Weasley_ boy," he said importantly.

Fred threw a cookie at him. "STOP RIGHT THERE!" Rose stretched her arms out over the table, "I DID NOT BAKE ALL OF THIS FOOD SO YOU IDIOTS WOULD PLASTER EACH OTHER WITH IT. THERE WILL BE NO FOOD FIGHT IN THIS KITCHEN...TODAY. MAYBE ANOTHER DAY WHEN I DIDN'T WORK SO HARD AT BAKING ALL OF THIS! BUT NOT TODAY!"

They all stared at her with wide eyes. Everyone knew that it was a rare occasion for more than two Weasley family members to sit at a table together and NOT start a food fight. Rose had put a stop to it before it even started.

"I reckon you'll be a good mum. You sounded just like Grandma Molly," Fred obviously meant this as a compliment, but Rose instantly started screaming again.

"I'M NOT GOING TO BE A MUM TO MALFOY'S BLOODY CHILDREN!"

James leaned to Fred and whispered, "Fifteen galleons says she's pregnant within a year."

"You're on, mate." they shook on it, without Rose even realizing what they were betting on.

"Well, since there will not be a food fight here today, then I'd best be off to eat dinner with my fiance's family," James stood up and rubbed his stomach ruefully, "good thing I didn't spoil my appetite by eating too many sweets."

"Oh, get out of here you great oaf!" Rose waved her hand toward the front door.

"See you all later!" and he was gone.

As it turned out, the right moment did not present itself that evening. Although James had a very good time at the Scamander home, the ring remained in his pocket. He decided that for the next three weeks, he would carry it around continuously in his pocket until he felt it was time to pull it out.

He imagined standing at the altar on their wedding day, Leila walking up the aisle in a gorgeous dress, and once she reached him, he would drop onto one knee and ask her right then and there. In front of everyone. Moments before they became man and wife. The thought amused him, but he hoped he wouldn't wait until the last minute.

With his hopes high, James Potter crawled into bed at home ready for a good night of much needed sleep, putting off his worries until tomorrow.

...

"James, sweetie, get up," Ginny Potter encouraged her son gently as she swept his black hair over his forehead. James grumbled in his sleep, swatted at her hand, and rolled over. "JAMES SIRIUS POTTER! GET YOUR LAZY ARSE OUT OF BED RIGHT NOW!"

That did the trick. Twisted up in his blankets, James scrambled and fell as he attempted to get out of his bed. "Bloody hell, Mum, what's wrong?" he asked angrily once he realized there wasn't an emergency.

Ginny gave a small smile, "The house next door that has been up for sale for ages was sold yesterday. The new people are moving in and I thought it would be nice for us to go and introduce ourselves. Be ready in fifteen minutes."

He watched his mother leave with disbelief. Why did he have to go greet their new neighbors anyway? In three weeks he wouldn't even be living here. His stomach sank at that thought. He didn't want to leave Godric's Hollow but he imagined that Leila would prefer to live close to her parents. Or maybe London. She was more of a city girl.

He cast a quick charm to clean himself up a bit, got dressed, and was downstairs within five minutes. The ring that he had purchased for Leila was in the pocket of his muggle trousers. With any luck he would be with his lovely fiance very soon and hopefully the right moment would arise for him to propose to her properly.

To James's amusement, his dad looked just as disgruntled with this as he felt. Harry Potter was standing by the door holding a basket of what was more than likely a few pies and cookies. "Gin," he said, "shouldn't we wait for them to get settled? They're probably muggles and Merlin knows it takes forever to move when you can't use magic."

"Yeah," said James suddenly, "What if they ask us to help?"

"Then we'll help," snapped Lily as she tied up her long red hair into a ponytail, "I wouldn't mind. I hope they have a daughter around my age."

"Let's go find out, shall we? Lead the way, Dear," said Ginny, motioning for Harry to open the door. The four Potters exited the house, James bringing up the rear. They traipsed across their lawn to the sidewalk and made their way up to the front door of the house next door.

"I don't see a moving truck," said Ginny. "But there is a car over there."

"Ah, muggles," said James wisely.

"We have a car and we're not muggles," muttered Lily.

"Yeah, but we're odd, even for wizards," James whispered back. The siblings laughed.

Harry attempted, and failed, to smooth down his hair before knocking twice sharply on the front door. There was a pause then the door was opened by a tall blonde bloke. "Ly-Lysander?" stuttered James, recognizing Lysander Scamander, "you bought the house next door to my parents?"

"Blimey, no," said Lysander with a laugh, "I'm just helping my older sister move in."

"Your...sister?" James stepped forward in confusion.

A large smile spread across Lysander's face as he opened the door wide, motioning for James to come in, and said, "Welcome home, big brother."

James stepped with trepidation into the house. There was Leila across the room, sweeping her wand around making items appear; a rug on the wooden floor, a couch against the wall, a tall oil lamp in the corner. She glanced up and gazed at him in surprise. Nervously, she gave a timid grin, and asked, "Do you like it? I wanted to surprise you. I hope you don't mind. I took the gold from your vault and bought this place, you know, because it's close to your folks."

James looked shocked. For a moment, Leila's grin started to slip, but then James smiled at her and said in a quiet, serious voice that he rarely used, "I love it, Leila. So much. This is so much better than anything I could have hoped for."

He walked across the room to her, very gently took her hand in his, got down onto one knee and asked, "Leila Scamander, you make me happier than I ever thought I could be. Will you do me the very great honour of becoming my wife?" he pulled a black box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal the ring he'd bought her the day before.

"Yes, James, of course," her reply was immediate and sincere. James stood, slipped the ring onto her finger, and kissed her lightly on the lips. The first kiss they had shared since they were fifteen. It was chaste and sweet.

They heard sniffling from the doorway and turned to see Ginny and Lily both crying quietly. "We're just so happy," said Lily, "for both of you."

James threw an arm around his fiance's shoulders, "I'm happy for us, too. How lucky am I? This girl is amazing!"

"With a mother like Luna, of course she is," said Ginny fondly.

"This was very thoughtful of you, Leila," said Harry politely, "I'm sure my son appreciates this much more than you know."

"Most definitely. Now, dear mother," James skipped over to where his parents were standing, "I do believe that you made some delicious food for the new owners of this home, which just so happen to be Leila and myself," he took the basket from his father and peeked inside, "oh good!" he declared, "treacle tart! My favorite!"

...


	4. Problems with Honesty

**A/N: Woot! Another chapter up quickly! This one is long, too. Not as much Rose/Scorpius as I intended, but Rose's character is just so…skittish. I don't imagine her to want to be around him much at first. Not to mention, I have two other important couples to write about! **

**I am really enjoying writing this story. I hope you're all enjoying reading it! The more I write, the more ideas I have about future chapters. Please let me know what you think of this chapter. Short author's note at the end.**

**WARNING: Mentions of violence, language, and sexual references in this chapter.**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.**

…**.**

Rose was chewing on the end of her quill as she gazed thoughtfully at the list before her. It was a list of all of her cousins, their fiances, and their wedding dates.

_Victoire - Teddy Lupin - already married_

_James - Leila Scamander - July 14th_

_Molly - William Corner - July 15th_

_Rose - Scorpius Bloody Malfoy - July 21st_

_Fred - Heather Kinder - July 28th_

_Roxanne - Calvin Saunders - August 4th_

_Lucy - Lysander Scamander - August 11th_

_Louis - Verity Abbott - August 12th_

_Albus - Norah Zabini - August 26th_

_Dominique - Nathan Zabini - August 27th_

_Lily - Vincent Longbottom - to be determined. At least two years in the future._

_Hugo - too young to be subjected to this stupid law_

Rose nearly screamed in frustration. How was this fair on any level? She chided the trail of her thoughts. The world didn't revolve around her. This injustice had been inflicted upon the whole wizarding world.

Albus was still sleeping. He had been out late with Fred doing Merlin only knew what until all hours of the night. Probably drinking. Not content to just sit around her flat doing nothing, Rose decided that she would do something nice.

It was still very early, so she took her time getting ready. A long hot shower was always a good way to start the day. Then she spent a significant amount of time, hair products, and wand waving, to tame her hair. With a smirk she realized that Malfoy had never seen her when she straightened her hair. It gave her an entirely different look. Instead of a young silly schoolgirl she looked more like a mature adult.

At first she pulled out some nice witches robes but then changed her mind. It's not like she was trying to impress anyone. A simple green summer dress was perfect. It was strapless and just barely reached her knee. With a glance in the mirror her eyes widened. She looked rather pretty. The make-up on her face was something she rarely used and the effect of it combined with the hair and dress made her look like a lady.

That idea caused her to snort in amusement and go to the kitchen. With a swish of her wand, all of the sweets that her cousins had not eaten the day before were compiled into a basket on the counter. A basket that just so happened to have an Undetectable Extension Charm on it.

Scorpius had given her permission to floo directly into the mansion any time she wanted, so she decided today would be the first day to try it out. Rose stepped into the grate with a handful of floo powder. "Malfoy Manor!" she declared.

She tentatively emerged into what was obviously a bedroom and started dusting the soot off of her favorite summer dress. The bedroom was somewhat tidy, with a few items of clothing strewn about. There were large arched windows across from the fireplace, and Rose was delighted to see there was a large window seat and many bookshelves.

The bed in the room was enormous. It had hangings like the ones at Hogwarts, but these were all tied to the posts so the bed was completely open. The red blanket and sheets were crumpled as if someone had just crawled out of them. A wardrobe near the bed stood ajar with clothes peeking out.

The dresser was adorned with manly items such as cologne, a silver pocket watch, a little black ring box, a wand, and hair gel. Wait. Rose's attention snapped back to the jewelry box. It looked suspiciously like the type of box an engagement ring would be in.

She reached forward then pulled her hand back. Then she reached for it again but before her hand was even close to it a voice asked in amusement, "Snooping around my room while I'm in the shower?"

Rose spun around to see that Scorpius had just entered from an adjoining room. It must be the lavatory because the door that had previously been closed was now open and a light cloud of steam was rolling out of it.

Scorpius Malfoy stood staring at Rose with amusement sparkling in his eyes as she blushed red at his appearance. His body was glistening under a layer of water, his hair was mused and sticking up in every direction, and the only thing he was wearing was a towel around his waist.

"I'm sorry," she said, her face was positively crimson by this point. She moved to turn away from him, but Scorpius just chuckled.

"No problem. Hand me my wand." Rose groped blindly on the dresser, her eyes closed, until she gripped the thin piece of wood and she tossed it to him, still with her eyes shut. "Nice throw," he complimented.

Rose peeked out through slitted eyelids and saw that Scorpius had dressed himself magically, his wand in his hand as he appraised himself in the full length mirror. He was clad in muggle jeans and a plain grey t-shirt. His feet were still bare, but aside from that he looked ready for the day.

"I thought the floo would take me to a sitting room or something," she mumbled, "I didn't realize I would be deposited directly into your bedroom."

"It depends on several factors. Who you're coming to see, what your intentions are, what room we're in, for you the fact that we are engaged is also a factor. The floo network in the house recognizes bonds."

"I see," she was getting over her embarrassment now and became more confident.

"You look nice," he said suddenly, "I've never seen your hair like that." She was secretly very pleased that he noticed. "Although," he studied her closely before continuing with his thought, "I think I prefer when it's all over the place."

Rose laughed, surprising herself as the sound escaped her. She preferred her hair all over the place, too, but everyone else loved it straight. It made her respect Scorpius just a little bit more that he shared her opinion of her hair. "Thanks. I brought your family some sweets."

"You bought cakes to bring over?" he inquired as he pulled a pair of socks from a dresser drawer and pulled them onto his feet.

"No, I baked them myself. Cakes, cookies, donuts, and muffins. There were pies, too, but James and Fred ate them all."

"Merlin. You must like to bake."

"Usually only when I'm upset or something's on my mind. It makes me feel better to be able to punch at something for a while, and punching dough is always productive." She set the basket gingerly on the floor.

"Is that the only reason you've come over? To deliver the entire inventory of a small bakery?"

"No, I also just wanted to visit. I was a bit cold to you the other day and I wanted you to know that I'm normally not like that," that was as close to an apology as Rose Weasley was capable of.

Scorpius seemed to realize this and was quick to assure her, "I didn't take any offense. I know we've never been friends or anything, but I've worked with you enough to know that you're not a bad person. That is, as long as someone is persistent enough to break through your tough outer shell."

Rose smiled, "Are you teasing me, Malfoy?"

"I do believe I am. Is that alright with you, Weasley?"

Rose nodded, "Yes. Getting teased is one thing I am very comfortable with. My family does it all the time."

"Speaking of your family, how are they and their new fiances doing?"

"Alright as far as I know. Dominique got the worst lot out of all of us. She's marrying Nathan Zabini."

Scorpius's face paled, "I'm sorry to hear that. I wouldn't have wished my idiot of a cousin on anybody."

"Nathan is your cousin?"

"Yes, his mum and my mum are sisters. Of course, his mum is a bitch and mine is awesome. I'm actually supposed to go over to Norah's new flat this evening. Norah is marrying your cousin Albus, right?"

"Yes, she is. They met up yesterday in Diagon Alley. I think he likes her well enough. Then again, I think Albus likes everyone. He's genuinely a really great bloke."

"I'm glad. Norah deserves someone who is going to treat her right. She's had a really hard life."

Rose thought about the quiet Hufflepuff girl Norah was in school and couldn't imagine anyone being mean to such a sweet little thing. "I hate that we're strangers." The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. With obvious embarrassment Rose tried to explain herself, "I just, I mean, this would be so much easier if we knew each other better. If we had tried being friends at Hogwarts or something. Honestly, Scorpius, I know almost nothing about you."

"Take a look around," Scorpius spread his arms wide, motioning to all of his room, "my bedroom probably gives you a fairly good glance into my personality."

Rose went over to study the bookshelf. Muggle books as well as wizard ones adorned the shelves. Mostly they were of the mystery variety. All of his schoolbooks were there, too. There was a poster of the England Quidditch Team on one wall. Aside from the books and his clothes, there was nothing else muggle in the place.

Above the fireplace there was a tapestry of the Malfoy family crest and an enormous book on wizarding genealogy lay open on his bedside table. Along with a pair of rectangular black-rimmed glasses. "You have problems with your eyesight?"

"I just need them for reading."

Rose nodded at his answer, continuing her inspection of the area. Something in the corner of her eye caught her attention. Barely peeking out from behind an arm chair was a black case. She walked to it and pulled it out. It was a violin case. "Do you play?"

"Yes. The piano, too. Mum said it was important for me to be a 'cultured young man.'"

"Smart woman. Do you have any other secret talents?"

"That depends. Is it too soon to flirt with my fiance?"

She scowled, "Yes, it is."

"Alright, then I'll just say that I do have other secret talents, but you'll just have to find out later what they are."

Starting to feel uncomfortable, Rose went back to the center of the room and wrapped her arms around herself. "Your house is huge."

"Would you like a tour? You'll need one eventually anyway if you're going to be living here in a month."

"Living...here?" she gulped.

"Is that alright with you? I mean, I'm not too keen on the idea of moving, but if you'd be unhappy here, we can consider other options."

Honestly, Rose didn't want to live with him at all. She refrained from saying this and decided that it didn't really matter to her. "No, here is fine. I was just surprised that you wanted us to live with your parents."

Scorpius laughed, "Sometimes I forget that they live here at all. We're on the fifth floor right now. My parents room is on the second floor, opposite side of the house. We could go weeks without bumping into each other. As a matter of fact, one summer I did go three days thinking that they were in France when really they were here the whole time."

"Then I think that tour is a good idea," Rose held out her hand to him. Scorpius took hold of her offered hand and together they left the bedroom, the basket of sweets sitting forgotten on the floor.

...

Two hours later, Scorpius and Rose found themselves outside sitting on a stone bench in the garden. Rose was throwing breadcrumbs to the peacocks from bread that Scorpius had summoned from the kitchen. To say that she was impressed by the tour was an understatement.

Her previous assumption that the mansion was probably swimming in ancient magic and mysterious spells was proved to be correct, but Scorpius told her about all of the ones he knew of himself. He told her of the invisible door that led to the private library and the charmed window that opened every morning at six o'clock to let in the owl who delivered the newspaper. He introduced her to the two other house-elves who lived in the mansion.

Finally they had ventured outside and Rose discovered that this was her favorite place of all of Malfoy Manor. Well, okay, maybe second favorite place in comparison to the library. "I'm afraid I really should be going," she sounded almost sad about this.

"Do you have work or something? I only just realized I never asked about what sort of job you have or what you want to do."

"I'm a writer," she said this with a shrug, "I do freelance work. A lot of different publications buy my articles. _The Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly, The Quibbler_, to name a few."

"Not going to continue your schooling then?"

"No, I don't think so. I love writing too much to consider another profession. Maybe some day I'll open a bakery as a side job. Oh! The food I brought!"

"_Accio Rose's basket!"_ Scorpius didn't have to say the words out loud. He actually preferred nonverbal spells, but he wanted Rose to know that she didn't have to panic; with a sharp flick of his wand, the food was zooming toward them. "Would you like to take the basket home with you and I'll just keep the goodies inside?"

"No, keep the basket. I put an undetectable extension charm on it so it's much bigger on the inside." Rose smirked at her own silly reference to a silly muggle television show about a raggedy doctor and his adventures.

"If you only write freelance, what's the rush to leave?"

"I promised my cousin Freddy that I would meet him in Diagon Alley to help him look at engagement rings. James was supposed to help him, but Leila surprised him and bought a house so they're decorating it today."

"It must be nice to have such a big family."

"Not always. Anyway, Scorpius, here's my address. You're welcome to stop by any time you want."

In silence, he walked her around the grounds until they reached the gates. "Once we're married and your last name is Malfoy you'll be able to Apparate in and out of the place."

Rose just nodded and said, "Thanks for not being a total prat." She spun on the spot and disappeared.

Scorpius was somewhat frustrated with his fiance. She wasn't opening up to him. Not really. They were getting married in less than one month and he had to pry information out of her about the simplest things. Throughout the day, even though it had been a good day, she never volunteered information on her own.

After giving it some thought, he decided to visit her flat. If she was in Diagon Alley ring shopping she would probably be a while. Being somewhat familiar the area of muggle London written on the parchment in his hand, he Apparated as close as he could to the apartment building.

The fact that she lived in a muggle apartment building amused him greatly. He didn't see Hogwart's brightest witch living amongst muggles. But then again, he didn't know much about her, did he?

Opting not to take the lift, he skipped up the stairs to the fourth floor and knocked three times on the door. To his shock, Albus Potter opened the door. It wasn't the fact that Al answered the door that shocked Scorpius as much as the fact that Albus was wearing nothing except a pair of boxers sporting a pattern of racing brooms. His glasses were askew, his hair was messier than usual, and he was holding a bowl of cereal.

"Malfoy?"

"I'm sorry, I must have the wrong flat. I thought this was Rose's place."

"It is, come on in." Albus stepped back and Scorpius entered the apartment. To Scorpius, it was small but cozy. "Rose isn't here right now. I don't know where she is or when she will be back."

As he spoke, he disappeared down the hall and came back a minute later wearing a loose pair of jeans. "That's alright, I actually came to talk to Rose's roommate."

"That would be me," Al said with a smile as he continued to eat his cereal, "What did you want with me?"

"Perhaps I should talk to her best friend instead."

Al laughed, "That's still me, Malfoy. Rose and I are roommates, best friends, cousins..." he ticked them off on his fingers as he recounted all of the things that Rose was to him.

"Doesn't she have any close girlfriends?"

"Actually...no. Rose's closest friend who is a girl is our cousin Roxanne Weasley. You see, Rose normally doesn't get along well with other girls."

"Why not?"

Al looked unsure of himself, but with a quick exhale of breath he said, "I probably shouldn't say anything, but you really have your work cut out for you marrying a bird like Rose."

"What do you mean?"

"Rose Weasley is the best and the worst. She can be the meanest, coldest, most annoying bird on the planet. Or she can be the sweetest, most caring, loving girl in the world."

Scorpius considered this, "I see what you mean, I think. We've gotten together twice since our engagement and no matter what I do, I can't get her to really open up. She's not herself around me. She sort of clams up and acts all awkward. I was shocked when she showed up at my place this morning with a basket full of sweets."

"She's nervous," said Al, "is that what you wanted to ask about? How to get her to open up?"

"Well...don't think I'm a creeper or anything, but I was hoping to just sort of take a look around her room, see what sort of stuff she's into? Maybe I could think of some nice gesture or something to do for her."

"Why are you trying so hard, Malfoy?"

"What?"

"I mean, what's in this for you? What does it matter to you if Rose is happy or if she opens up to you? No matter what she has to marry you." Albus's sudden defensiveness caught Scorpius off guard.

"That's the point," Scorpius's eyes blazed just a bit and Al knew he should back off. This was the side of Scorpius that the Sorting Hat used to justify placing him in Slytherin. "We are being forced to get married. If I'm going to be stuck with your cousin every day for the rest of my life I sure as hell don't want either of us to be miserable. Why are you so fucking defensive?"

Al's eyes narrowed just a bit, "Listen, Malfoy, I'm going to be honest with you. Not because I like you or because I trust you, but because you're marrying Rose and you have to know. Consider this a warning. Everyone knows that you're not exactly a novice with dating," Scorpius snorted at this, realizing that he had rarely ever been without a girlfriend, "but Rose is different. She's only had one boyfriend before and that lasted about a month. It's not because she's not pretty, obviously Rose is beautiful, it's because she has a hard time with showing affection and acting the part of a girlfriend. She's got this...tough outer shell," Scorpius grinned as Albus used the same term he had used a few hours before, "and most blokes don't stick around long enough to break through it. That's why she doesn't have very many close girlfriends, either. Most girls share secrets and gossip, but Rose isn't good with sharing things about herself and doesn't have any patience for gossip."

"So what you're saying is that I need to be patient?"

"More than that. You need to be overly considerate of her. Like I said, she's never really dated much and this is new to her on every level. Just showing up at your house this morning is a huge thing for her. To her, she probably feels like she really put herself out there."

"By just stopping by to see me?" Scorpius questioned.

"Yes. I'm telling you, I know Rose. Also, it probably goes without saying, but don't you fucking hurt her. If she starts having real feelings for you, and you screw it up, I will kill you," Al's tone and expression did not even hint that his words were an empty threat.

"So if she has such a little amount of experience with men, does that mean that she...is she a..." Scorpius was having a very difficult time discussing these things with Albus Potter and wasn't sure how to best phrase his question.

"Yeah," Al looked almost amused at Scorpius's awkwardness, "Rose is a virgin."

"Bloody hell what did I get myself into," Scorpius mumbled as he ran a hand through his blonde hair. Since starting this conversation he was beginning to regret his hasty decision at demanding to have Rose Weasley as his wife.

"Don't be upset, mate, it's not what you got yourself into. It's the stupid Ministry."

Scorpius nodded his head gravely in agreement. "So does that mean you'll help me? I don't fancy Rose. I barely even know her. But I would like to. I don't want to marry someone I don't love."

Albus considered Scorpius's strange request. His original purpose for coming over had been to find out more about Rose and, hopefully, snoop around her bedroom to see what he could learn. If Albus had the opportunity to do the same things about Norah, he knew he would jump at the chance. He really knew where Scorpius was coming from because he felt the same way about his betrothed. Albus wasn't in love with Norah, but he hoped that he would be.

"Alright. But if I catch you doing anything perverted like sniffing her dirty laundry, I'm throwing your arse out."

Scorpius laughed and followed Albus down the short hallway, "I wouldn't blame you, mate."

"Well, here you go. Rose's room. If you have any questions about anything, let me know, I'll be finishing my breakfast in the kitchen," Albus pushed the bedroom door open for Scorpius and then left him alone.

The first thing he noticed was the scent. Rose's roomed smelled great. If he were being honest with himself, it smelled like her. It was an intoxicating blend of jasmine and something else floral.

It was a bright cozy little space with a small bed shoved into one corner. The bed was made neatly, with a yellow comforter. Like his own room, hers had a giant bookshelf that was overflowing with books. Most of the titles made him chuckle as they were obviously some type of muggle romance. There were movies, too, and Scorpius was unashamed to admit that he was fascinated by these. Growing up in Malfoy Manor, anything electronic did not work in his home, but he still occasionally went to the cinema.

He pulled a few of the movies from the shelf, reading the titles then the summaries on the back. Perhaps he could ask Rose if she wanted to spend an evening on her couch with him watching one of these muggle things? He heard that watching movies was an acceptable date in the muggle world.

After putting them back, he turned to her dresser. Merlin, it looked like a boutique blew up in there. Hair clips of all sizes, shapes, and colours were scattered around. There was all sorts of make-up, hair products, lotions, body sprays, and odd metal contraptions that he assumed were also some sort of beauty products.

Jewelry. There was so much of it. Obviously Rose favored necklaces. She had a beautiful wooden jewelry box that stood open and necklaces were what took up the majority of the space. Also a lot of earrings. It seemed she liked the dangly ones. This baffled Scorpius; after all, wouldn't dangly earrings just get tangled in all of that hair? There were a few rings and only one bracelet.

This, of course, made him think of the ring he had for her back in his room. Sitting on his own dresser. She had almost found it. It was a good thing he finished his shower when he had. After she had left his manor two days previously, his parents approached him and gave him the family ring. The same ring that had been in his family for generations. It was meant to be given to Rose, but Scorpius just couldn't picture it yet. He couldn't imagine himself putting the Malfoy ring on Rose Weasley's finger.

Moving his attention back to her bedroom, he looked over the pictures in the frames. They were all moving, wizarding, pictures except for one. That was the one that caught his attention. It remained quite stationary no matter how many times he poked at the occupants in the frame. One of them was obviously Rose and the other two were probably her muggle grandparents; they looked older, gray-haired, and they were smiling at the camera with their arms around Rose.

The wizarding ones were amusing to Scorpius as well. One of them was Hugo Weasley playing Quidditch on the Gryffindor team. He was flying back and forth in front of the goal hoops. Another was of Rose with her parents, on what was obviously her birthday because the Rose in the picture kept brushing her hair back and blowing out candles on a cake while her parents stood beside her smiling.

The third wizarding photograph was of Rose and Albus. Albus had his arm around her shoulders but every once in a while he would remove it, give her a playful shove, and she would tackle him, the two of them toppling out of sight laughing.

Finally, the last photograph was of the entire Weasley family. Scorpius swallowed hard at seeing all of her burly cousins and uncles. Merlin, he hoped he would be able to fit in well with her family. He walked across the green rug and opened her closet. SO MANY CLOTHES. Merlin's saggy balls! For the past seven years the girl went to a boarding school where a uniform was required. Had she really needed this many outfits for the holidays? Mostly they were dresses. More specially, summer dresses. Several pairs of muggle jeans and tops, then pushed to the very back, only four sets of witches robes. One nice heavy winter cloak that was an emerald green colour. The floor of the closet was littered with shoes; such a variety of shoes that Scorpius closed the closet before he could even try to identify what kinds they were.

The walls were bare, aside from two posters. One was of the Holyhead Harpies; the only professional all-witch Quidditch team in England. The other was a muggle band that he didn't recognize.

There was a desk in the corner opposite of the bed. The muggle computer looked out of place next to the rolls of parchment, quills, and inkwells. Having just a bit of knowledge about computers, Scorpius meandered over and hit a random key. Unsurprisingly, the computer had been left on and the background she had was a picture of herself, Albus, James, Lily, and Hugo in front of the Eiffel Tower. Lily was on Hugo's back and James was holding Rose bridal style while Albus stood in the center of the picture smiling at the camera. All of the inhabitants of the photograph were grinning so broadly that Scorpius knew they had probably been laughing when the picture was taken. However, his insignificant amount of muggle technology stopped him from snooping in her computer any further than the screen before him.

With another glance around, he didn't think he could glean anymore information from her living space. Albus was waiting for him in the kitchen, just as he said he would be. "I forgot to tell you that all of her music is next to the radio," Albus gestured vaguely toward the sitting room.

Scorpius went to inspect the large collection of music. "What is this?" Scorpius mumbled as he pulled CDs from a shelf and glanced them over.

"CDs," said Al, "muggle devices that play music when you put them into this slot here," he motioned to the stereo, "Rose is really into muggle music. Music in general, really."

"Ah, that explains why she seemed particularly interested in my violin."

"Probably. She plays the violin, too."

"She didn't tell me."

"Of course not," Albus grumbled with a roll of his eyes. "She plays several instruments. Not just classical ones, though. She's good with the bass guitar."

"Anything else I should know?" Scorpius's tone was just a little biting. He hated having to find all of this out from his fiance's cousin instead of from Rose herself.

"Yes," Albus's tone implied that this was important. Scorpius tore his gaze away from the CD in his hands to look at Albus. "Rose is never, ever, honest with anyone about her feelings. Except for me, and that's only because I can tell when she's lying."

"Got it," Scorpius said this lightly, but knew the implications were profound. "Mind if I make a copy?" he held the CD up and Albus shrugged indifferently. Scorpius pulled his wand from his pocket and made a copy of a few different CDs.

"Did you get everything you wanted?"

"There was just one more thing. I wanted to ask you, please, Albus, to try to talk to Rose about me. Get her to see that I'm not a bad guy. I want her to be happy with me and I want to be happy with her."

"I will," promised Albus and he meant it. So far, he was almost angry to admit that he kind of liked Scorpius. A little. Of course, no one would ever be good enough for Rose just like no one, not even Vincent Longbottom, would be good enough for Lily.

"I'll be out of your hair now, Potter. See you around."

"Bye, Malfoy."

Scorpius Apparated from the flat.

...

Scorpius Malfoy had three best friends. One was a Slytherin dorm mate in his year, Liam Jackson. He had remained silent while Nott, Zabini, Goyle, and Selwyn had discussed Rose on their last night at Hogwarts. As he thought of Liam now he felt a stab of guilt as he realized they hadn't spoken since graduation. Normally they contacted each other every couple of days. Then again, Liam was starting his Healer training and Scorpius was sure that kept him very busy. He was a half-blood wizard; the only half-blood in their dormitory at Hogwarts.

Adara Garrison was a pureblood witch who was also a Slytherin who had been in Scorpius's year. She had a very obvious crush on Liam for their last two years of Hogwarts, but Liam had never noticed. Nor had Adara ever told him. Scorpius hoped that she had the courage to put Liam as her first choice and that she got him.

Norah Zabini, his cousin on his mother's side, was a Hufflepuff at Hogwarts but she and Scorpius had always been very close. She was the only person, aside from his mother, who he ever confided in that he had almost been put into Gryffindor. Now he almost wished he would have let that happen. At least then he probably would have been on better terms with the Potters and Weasleys.

It was his love for his cousin that brought Scorpius to this. He knew how her family was. He knew that leaving home had probably been a nightmare and was so proud of her for standing up for herself after so many years of constant abuse. Now he found himself knocking on the door of her new flat, with a box under his arm. Norah asked from the other side of the door, "Who is it?"

"Scorpius Malfoy," he replied with a chuckle in his voice.

"Prove it," her voice was slightly muffled by the door.

Scorpius would have been laughing heartily, but in truth, her concern wasn't unwarranted. He wouldn't put it past her family to try to trick her into letting them in. "You've had a crush on Albus Potter since third year."

"I have not!" she flung the door open to glare at him and point a finger in his face, "I just always thought he was a nice bloke! I didn't _fancy_ him!"

"Keep telling yourself that, Shortie," he swept past her into the room and looked around, "Nice place." He dropped the box onto the floor with a loud thump and the contents came soaring magically out. All across the flat items were appearing; a toothbrush holder in the bathroom, pots and pans in the kitchen, a sofa in the sitting room, and so much more.

"Oh Scorpius," Norah breathed, her face showed absolute delight. "You shouldn't have done all of this!"

"Consider it an engagement present," he replied with an innocent shrug. "Norah," he breathed, rushing to her and taking her face very gingerly in his hands, "What happened to you?" her cheek and jaw were a very deep purple and blue hue where her father had hit her the day before.

"My dad," she said dryly, "right before I left."

"I'm so sorry," said Scorpius, "Why didn't you heal it?"

Norah blushed, averted her eyes, and begrudgingly told him, "I was so upset last night that I was afraid I would mess up the spell and hex my jaw off or something. Then, this morning, I just forgot about it."

"May I?" he brought his wand up. She nodded and with a quick flick it was healed and the bruising was gone. A smile was her way of thanking him.

Norah went to the kitchen and put on a pot of tea before bustling back into the sitting room where Scorpius had started a fire in the fireplace and was now sitting on the sofa. "You never did say who..."

"Rose Weasley," he replied with a sigh.

"Was she your first choice?"

"My only choice," he grinned at his cousin, "I put her name down as all three options."

Norah's grin was identical to his, "Only you, Scorpius Malfoy, only you." Norah paused before asking, "What's she like?"

"Insane," said Scorpius, "Impossible. She has this wall up and I'm having a hard time getting her to take it down."

"I'm not surprised. Rose Weasley has always struck me as the guarded type. Be patient with her, Scor."

"What do you think I'm going to do? Curse her until she spills all of her secrets to me? Of course I'm going to be bloody patient!"

Norah was trying very hard to not laugh at how impatient he sounded. "Good. Now, tell me when you started to fancy her."

"I don't fancy her."

"Then why in the name of Merlin did you put her name down three times?"

"Zach, Rider, Travis, and Nathan were talking about her. I think Zach and Nathan both wanted her, but only because she's pretty. How could I let her be with one of them?"

Norah looked at him with her eyebrows drawn together in confusion, "Scor, I know that any girl with any of those idiots would be mistreated, but if whichever of them didn't get Rose, then they still got another witch. Nathan's with Dominique Weasley."

"I know, but I wasn't thinking about that at the time. I kind of know Rose a bit from our Prefect duties, and when they talked about raping her and beating her, it made me sick. Choosing her was the only thing I could think of."

"That was very noble of you," said Norah, but her eyes were saying something else. Something that she wasn't saying out loud.

"What is it?" Scorpius asked with a sigh, knowing there was more on her mind.

"Nothing," Norah had always been rubbish at lying and this was no exception. She made her escape by rushing to the kitchen when the tea kettle started to whistle. When she returned, she had a cup of tea for each of them.

"Come on, Norah, what are you not saying?"

"I just...I think that somewhere, deep down, you might have just a little tiny bit of feelings for Rose."

"What? No. I don't even really know her."

"I'm just saying. I don't think you picked her out of pity."

...

Albus Potter knocked on the door of his fiance's flat. Norah had agreed to go on a date with him that evening and he had a lot of plans. He was going to take her to his favorite restaurant in Paris, then for a walk through the park, and then a romantic boat ride. Maybe, just _maybe_, he would give her a kiss goodnight.

"Come in!" her soft voice called.

Albus entered the flat and was shocked to see that Norah was in the arms of another man. Not just any other man, but Scorpius fucking Malfoy. He had his arms around her waist and had lifted her feet off the ground. That was when a horrible thought struck Albus; they were both purebloods. What if they had been dating or fancied each other when this law took effect? What if they were still seeing each other?

Albus wanted to turn and leave. But Scorpius stopped him, "Don't just stand there Potter, come in and let me talk with you about your intentions with my cousin." Scorpius set Norah down and Albus couldn't help but smile at her. She was wearing a very pretty black dress. It had wide straps but the front dipped very low indeed. It reached just below her knee. Her feet were clad in strappy heels and her hair had been swept up into a simple but elegant up-do.

"Your cousin?" he asked.

"Yes. Norah is my favorite cousin. Just like Rose is yours. You'd better treat her right, Albus. She deserves the best and you're certainly not it, but it's not like I can do anything about that," he teased.

Albus smiled at him and when their eyes locked they realized that they had reached a silent understanding. They were going to marry each other's cousins. Cousins they both loved very much. Perhaps they could be friends after all. "I'll have her home by midnight, Sir," Albus was joking right back with him.

Scorpius laughed, "Have a great night. I'll see you later, Nor."

"Night, Scorp."

Scorpius waved to them as they left her flat. "I didn't know he was your cousin."

"Not many people do. My mum and his mum are sisters. He likes you, by the way."

"How can you tell?"

"For one thing, he didn't kill you the moment you came in. For another, we talked about it a little before you arrived. I hope you two can become mates."

"I hope so, too," Albus reached to take hold of her hand. For a moment Albus thought she was going to pull away, "If you'll let me, I need to Apparate us somewhere."

"Yes, that's fine," her words were sure but her hand shook just slightly. Albus gave it what he hoped was a comforting squeeze and spun on the spot.

...

Rose was dancing and singing in her flat. Albus was on a date with Norah, Fred had the engagement ring picked out for Heather, and now she had the flat to herself. Wanting to be comfortable, she had already put on her pajamas; short red shorts and a black tank top.

Her long red hair was in two braids and she was currently standing on the couch, playing an air guitar, and singing as loudly as she could, "I NEVER WANT TO HEAR YOU SAYYYYYY 'I WANT IT THAT WAY'!"

"Merlin," Albus had entered at some point. Rose, however, wasn't embarrassed of anything in front of her best friend. She waved at him and continued with her performance, ignoring his objections. "Turn off that rubbish! It's bad enough that you have to listen to such out-of-date music, but it's out-of-date, muggle, American, _boy band_ music," he said in disgust.

Rose laughed, flicked her wand at the radio to silence it, and said, "It's still good and it's definitely not out-of-date. I mean, holy hippogriffs, Gran still listens to Celestina Warbeck! You have no room to make fun of music from the 2000's."

Not bothering to argue, Albus pulled off his jacket and threw it on the sofa. "Aren't you going to ask about my date?"

"After my defense of my taste in music. Now, dear cousin, how was your date?" Rose simply jumped up, folded her feet, and let her slender bottom drop down onto the bouncy sofa cushion that she had previously been standing on.

"Really great," Albus was grinning like an idiot. "I don't know why, but she seemed really nervous at first. Not like normal first date nervous, but like she was actually afraid or something. But by the time we finished dinner, she was much more relaxed. Of course, that could have been because of the small glass of wine she had. Anyway, We went for a walk through the park and for that boat ride you suggested. We had an excellent time. I think that I'm actually starting to fancy her. Which is a good thing seeing as how we're going to get married."

Rose had a silly grin on her face, "Did you kiss her?"

Al's ears turned slightly red as he confessed, "Yeah, I kissed her."

"Oh!" squealed Rose, who was now bouncing up and down in her seat and hitting Albus repeatedly in her excitement, "How was it? Did you see fireworks? Did she kiss you back?"

"Godric, Rose, it was just a kiss. The night had gone absolutely perfectly, so when we got back to her flat, I took her face in my hands," Al mimed this in midair, as if he had hold of an invisible face, "then I just leaned in and kissed her very lightly," again, he mimed this in midair, and Rose was watching intently, "I started to pull back, but then," he said dramatically, "out of bloody _nowhere_, she wrapped her arms around my neck and started snogging the pants off me!"

She squealed again, "No way! Al, she must like you! Was it good?"

"No," said Al, "it wasn't good. It was _excellent_. She was a very good kisser and she tasted like cinnamon."

"I'm so happy for you! When will you see each other again?"

"Well, seeing as how we only really have two months before we're going to be married, we're trying to see each other as often as possible. We're going to have lunch tomorrow, but that's not really a date. Our next actual date is two nights from now."

"Go get your pajamas on and we can watch a movie," said Rose, "we only have one month before I'll be a married woman and I want to spend as much time with my favorite cousin as I possibly can. While you're getting changed I'll make the popcorn!"

He disappeared down the hall to his bedroom and Rose went to make popcorn. Now that Albus had kissed Norah, Rose's mind was buzzing with new thoughts that she hadn't considered before. She had been so preoccupied with the idea of marriage that the other things had been pushed aside. Like kissing...and sex. She cringed. Tomorrow, she decided, she would worry about that. Tomorrow she would talk to Albus, and James, and Fred, her three best friends in the whole world, and they would tell her that it would be okay. They would tell her that it wasn't something to be afraid of and it wouldn't hurt too badly.

But for tonight, she wasn't going to worry about anything. She was going to kick back with her best mate and watch silly muggle comedies and eat all the popcorn her stomach would let her eat.

...

James Potter and Leila Scamander had spent the entire day moving into their new home. Now, as they lay side by side, catching their breath on the king sized bed in the master bedroom, James finally felt like his life was headed in the right direction. Maybe this Ministry law hadn't been so terrible after all.

"That was...we haven't..." Leila's words were punctuated with deep breaths. They were both void of any clothing and were cuddling under the duvet. She didn't have to finish her thoughts for her lover to know what she was thinking. Her unfinished sentences ran through James's mind, _That was amazing, we haven't had sex in five years._

"You're wonderful," he told her as he kissed the top of her head.

"Do you think our parents will know what we've been up to if we don't go home tonight? Perhaps we should get dressed and leave."

"Can I ask you something, Lei?" James had ignored her suggestion completely. He had much more pressing thoughts on his mind.

"Anything," she replied.

"How many blokes have you been with...since me?"

"Since you? Two."

"That's all?"

Leila laughed, "Yes, that's bloody all! I'm not a slut, James. Why? How many birds have you bedded in the last five years?"

James took a moment to answer and that felt like the longest moment of her life, "Four. Aside from you, I've been with four girls."

"How long has it been since you last shagged?"

James glanced at the clock on the wall, "Oh, about three minutes."

Leila slapped his chest, "You know what I mean."

This times, James cringed and looked up at the ceiling, "It doesn't really matter. Because no matter how many girls I've been with or how often, you're the I'm marrying."

Leila sighed. Of course. She was the one he was marrying. But what was this reluctance he had to answer her question? Again she feared that James wanted to be with other girls aside from her. Maybe he'd been with someone else the day he got the letter. At that thought, Leila felt the urge to get dressed and leave.

Angry more at her own thoughts than him, she snapped, "What the hell does it matter if I'm the one you're marrying? It doesn't mean you fucking love me! It doesn't mean you're going to be faithful to me!"

Shocked by this sudden outburst, James cried indignantly, "Of course I fucking love you!"

"Fucking love me or love fucking me?" Leila was climbing out of the bed now and was searching for her clothes.

"Both!" James climbed out of bed after her and pulled on his trousers.

"Oh really? Then why have you been with someone else so recently? What, were you fucking someone else last night, and had a sudden epiphany this morning that you were in love with your fiance?"

"That's low, Lei," James snarled, "I wasn't with anyone last night and you know it! I would never cheat on you."

"Then why wouldn't you answer my question?"

"Because I didn't want to tell you the truth!"

"Oh, that's excellent!" Leila didn't care that she was being a hypocrite. She didn't care that she was keeping secrets from James but was mad at him for keeping secrets from her. "My soon-to-be husband doesn't want to be honest with me!"

"You want the truth? Fine! Here it is! When this law became a reality, I thought any chance I had of being with you was gone! I've been trying to work up the nerve for the past _eight fucking months _to ask you to be my girlfriend! But when I got that damned letter telling me that the Ministry was going to pair with me with someone, I knew I had to get over you fast. I went to a bar, a muggle bar, and I got pissed. I went home with some bird I met there. I don't even remember her name. That was two nights before I got the letter saying you were the girl I was going to marry, and you know what? I was so damn happy that I completely forgot about any other girl I'd ever been with except for you."

Leila studied James for a long few moments. She was partially dressed, with her bra and panties on, and James only had his trousers on. Without warning, Leila jumped at him. She locked her legs around his waist and tangled her hands into his already messy black hair and they fell back onto the bed kissing heatedly. "Does this mean you forgive me?" he mumbled against her jaw as his hands went to her arse.

"Yes. You've forgotten about them, now make me forget about them. Damn it, James, shag me until I've forgotten my own name," she begged.

James's response was a deep groan followed by a growl as he spun them around so she was pinned beneath him against the mattress. If it was a night of the best sex of her life that she wanted, then that was exactly what he was going to give her.

...

Norah Zabini had never felt happier. At some point during their intense snogging session, Albus had pulled her hair out of the up-do she had it in. As her own fingers ran through her mused locks, she realized that they just couldn't compare to Al's gentle touch.

Merlin, she had it bad for that boy. One date and she was head over heels. Then again, she supposed sometimes you just _knew_. Scorpius had been the only boy in her life who she trusted for so long. Now she trusted Albus, too. Trusted him so bloody much.

Humming, she went to her bedroom and stripped out of her dress, leaving her in just the slip. That was when there was a knock on the door. Norah hastily pulled a robe over her scantily clad body and rushed to the door. "Who is it?"

"Dominique Weasley," the feminine voice was shaking and Norah could tell without even seeing her that she'd been crying. Normally she would ask the person on the other side of the door to prove that they were in fact whoever they claimed to be, but it was the sadness in her voice that caused Norah to wrench the door open without question.

"What's wrong?" Norah honestly didn't know Dominique Weasley very well. Being best friends with Lucy, she occasionally ran into all of the members of the Weasley family, but that didn't mean she was close to any of them.

Dominique's knees gave out at that moment and Norah caught her. Dominique was a very slim girl so she didn't weigh much, but Norah wasn't exactly strong. She half-carried and half-dragged the girl to the sofa. After a few flicks of her wand over Dom's body, Norah knew exactly what was going on here. Dominique was in shock.

After casting a few quick spells and summoning a mug of hot chocolate from the kitchen and tipping a few sips into her mouth, she started to blink and then seemed to come into focus. "You're Nathan's sister, right?"

"Yes."

"Has he always been so..."

"Violent?" Dom's big crystal blue eyes widened in confirmation but she said nothing. "Yes," Norah answered, "Did he hit you?"

"Not...really..." Dominique breathed the words and stood on shaky legs. She pulled her sweater up to reveal two large bruises shaped like hand prints, on either side of her torso. "He just grabbed me very hard. He...scared me. I panicked and came here."

"How did you know where to find me?" Norah was panicking now, too. If Dom knew where she was, then did Nathan as well?

"I ran into Albus when he was on his way to pick you up for his date. I was already in Diagon Alley, waiting to meet your brother, and Al mentioned you lived above Ollivanders."

"Did you tell my brother?"

"No."

"Oh, thank Merlin. Dominique, please, please don't tell him. I finally got away from him and my parents."

These words must have scared Dom even further because she started crying, "He's horrible," she sobbed, "Why did this happen to me?"

Norah wrapped her arms around the sobbing girl and whispered, "I used to ask myself that all the time. Eventually I realized that it wasn't because of me. It wasn't my fault or anything I had done. He's the monster, Dom, and you have to remember that. Do you want to stay here tonight?"

Dominique nodded and Norah kept her arms around her as she led her into the bedroom. After lending her a pair of pajamas to change into, the two girls climbed into the bed. "Thank you," Dom said softly.

"Any time, Dominique, any time."

….

**A/N: What do you think Scorpius is going to do with all of the information he learned about Rose? How long do you think it will take her to open up to him? Before or after they're married? **

**NEXT CHAPTER PREVIEW:**

_"I'm not going to lie," James shook his head, "I've no idea what it's like for a girl. I've been with a virgin or two, and they said it hurt, but then again, I'm pretty well-endowed." _

_Fred and Albus laughed but Rose's face drained of colour, "Oh Merlin. What if it hurts really bad? What if I'm rubbish at it? What if he's rubbish at it? Godric, I think I'm going to have a panic attack."_

_"Calm down," Albus encouraged as he put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "It's not like you're being forced to shag him right away. Tell him you're not comfortable and want to wait until you're ready." _

_"Actually," Fred cringed as he revealed this information, "Rose will have just over a week after getting married to shag him. Then the Ministry gets involved."_

_Albus scowled as this fact registered with him, "Explain," he growled._


	5. Awkward and Uncomfortable

**A/N: I have been really excited about this story so I've been working on it a lot. I'm not going to delve much into other couples (i.e. Dom and Nathan, Fred and Heather, Roxanne and Calvin, etc.) although they will be mentioned on occasion and we will meet all of those characters at some time or another. **

**I will focus on Albus and Norah, James and Leila, and of course, Scorpius and Rose. I try to address any questions/concerns reviewers have in the story as opposed to making comments in the authors notes. So, if you voiced any questions/comments/concerns, I will try to clear them up in the story. I appreciate all of the reviews, favorites, and follows so much! You guys are amazing! Let's hope the future chapters live up to all of your expectations and then some! **

**I HAVE AN IMPORTANT QUESTION FOR ALL OF MY READERS! How detailed do you want the sex scenes to be? I sort of skimmed over James and Leila's steamy scene in the last chapter for three reasons. 1. The chapter was already very lengthy. 2. I wasn't sure how explicit you wanted it to be. 3. Scorpius and Rose is the main pairing and their intimate scenes will be much more detailed than the intimate scenes of the other couples.**

**Yours,**

**MofDA**

**DISCLAIMER: All recognizable characters, ideas, events, etc. do not belong to me. They belong to JK Rowling. Also, if the links I inserted show up for you to click on them, I don't own the dresses in the pictures. I just found them on google search. I do not own google search, either. **

**WARNING: Language and sexual references in this chapter.**

…

When she woke up, Norah was surprised to find that she was alone. With a quick glance at the clock on the wall she confirmed that she had less than two hours before she had to start work. After she got out of bed, she made it with a flick of her wand. The sheets and blankets magically pulled themselves across the bed neatly.

"Good morning!" Norah jumped at the sudden bubbly voice that greeted her as she came around the corner into the kitchen. Dominique was at the stove with a spatula in one hand and her wand in the other.

"You seem to be in a very good mood considering...everything," Norah commented as she opened the fridge to extract a bottle of juice.

"Yes, well, I have a plan now."

"A plan? For dealing with Nathan?"

"Yep," Dom grinned and waggled her eyebrows. "I'm just going to be firm with him. I'll tell him that if he ever lays a hand on me, his arse is going to Azkaban. My uncle is the head of the Auror Office and my brother-in-law is the Assistant Head Auror."

Norah honestly didn't know if this would work or not. She couldn't imagine a guy like Nathan going down that easily, but Dominique's plan was a good one. "I really hope that plan of yours is successful. Merlin knows that Nathan deserves to spend time in Azkaban."

"At least one good thing has come of this," said the blonde, "It seems I'll have a pretty awesome sister-in-law."

...

"Hullo, family, beautiful morning, isn't it?" Harry and Ginny Potter were not idiots. Far from it. They knew that when their eldest son came into the kitchen early that morning with that silly grin on his face that he probably had not spent the night playing chess with Leila.

"Morning, James," said Ginny.

"Good morning, Son," Harry was awkwardly trying to avoid eye contact with James as he poured himself a cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table.

"I hope it's alright that I spent the night at the Scamanders," he said easily. Harry and Ginny exchanged a knowing look.

"James," Harry began, "you don't need to make up excuses. We know that you and Leila are getting married in just a few weeks. We know that the two of you moved all of your things into your new home yesterday..."

"What your father is trying to say is that if you spent the night with Leila at your new house, you can tell us. It's not like we waited until we were married to-"

"Ugh! Mum! Please spare me the mental images," James cringed. Both of his parents stared him down until he threw up his hands in surrender, "Fine! I was next door with Leila all night."

Ginny nodded, "We appreciate your honesty."

"Were you safe?" It was Lily who asked this question as she appeared in the kitchen. Her long red hair tangled and still clad in her pajamas.

"Lily!" Harry squeaked.

"What? I can't wait to be an aunt!"

"Yeah, well, I don't plan on being a dad any time soon," James said this casually as he pulled a plate of sausages toward himself.

"Ah, that must mean you used protection," Lily sounded disappointed about this.

By this point, Harry's eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open, "You shouldn't even know about those things!" He reprimanded his daughter.

"For Merlin's sake, Dad, I'm turning sixteen in less than a month," Lily suddenly looked exactly like her mother. She had her hands on her hips, her eyes narrowed, and that tone was something all too familiar to him. He remembered Ginny when she had been sixteen. She had been in fifth year when they had started dating. The things he had imagined doing with Ginny when she was that age!

"No breakfast for me, Gin," he said, "I'm not hungry anymore."

"James!" Rose Weasley came into the kitchen from the sitting room, having obviously just came into the house via the floo network. "I need you to come over to our flat as soon as you're finished eating."

"What's the rush? Take a seat, little cousin, have a sausage," he held out the plate to her. Rose couldn't turn down her Aunt Ginny's cooking, so she took the sausage, a biscuit, and a glass of juice.

When they had both finished eating, Rose dragged James to the fireplace and shoved him in. "Go get Fred," she told him, "bring him to my flat."

...

Rose was pacing in front of the sofa where her three best friends sat; James, Albus, and Fred. They were watching her with apprehension. Very calmly, Rose said, "I need to talk with you all about something."

"Rosie? What's wrong?" Fred looked like he was on the verge of standing up and going to her, but she shook her head at him.

"I'm getting married soon. I'm not...I mean, I've never...Godric, this is difficult. Okay, I'm just going to spit it out because I trust all of you and I know you're not going to laugh at me. I've never had sex before. Obviously married people have sex. Despite the fact that I really don't want to shag with Malfoy, I'm probably going to have to at some point, and I'm scared."

"Why are you scared?" James, Fred, and Al all had very serious faces and that made Rose feel better. She had secretly worried that they would all burst into fits of laughter and was relieved that they were being mature about this.

"Is it because it's Malfoy?" asked Al as he made a face.

"I have a few questions I'm hoping you idiots can answer," she continued, ignoring their questions, "My first question is...will it hurt?" she bit her lip and frowned.

"I'm not going to lie," James shook his head, "I've no idea what it's like for a girl. I've been with a virgin or two, and they said it hurt, but then again, I'm pretty well-endowed."

Fred and Albus laughed but Rose's face drained of colour, "Oh Merlin. What if it hurts really bad? What if I'm rubbish at it? What if he's rubbish at it? Godric, I think I'm going to have a panic attack."

"Calm down," Albus encouraged as he put a comforting hand on her shoulder, "It's not like you're being forced to shag him right away. Tell him you're not comfortable and want to wait until you're ready."

"Actually," Fred cringed as he revealed this information, "Rose will have just over a week after getting married to shag him. Then the Ministry gets involved."

Albus scowled as this fact registered with him, "Explain," he growled.

"As you know, I work at the Ministry. I have a mate who works in the Magical Bonds and Contracts office. That's where the marriage certificates go. When they arrive at his office, they're normal sheets of parchment. But when a marriage is...consumated...the parchment turns gold. It's an archaic tradition because of all of the arranged marriages in the wizarding world. Seeing as how _all_ of the marriages now are arranged, as opposed to the previously small percentage, well the Ministry will know if you're not shagging. They check all of the marriage licenses on the first of every month. Your wedding date is the 21st. You'll have ten days after getting married to have sex with him before the Ministry reviews your license. If it hasn't turned colour, they'll be knocking on your door demanding an explanation. I honestly don't know what will happen if they have to come and talk with you, but I'm sure it's something you'll want to avoid."

"Oh...fucking Merlin..." Rose dropped down to sit on the coffee table in front of the boys.

"Any other questions?" asked James brightly, "you came to the right people about this, by the way. Fred and I are experts."

"Oi! What about me?" Al said indignantly.

"Meh," James made a face at his younger brother, "I don't know much about your sex life and I'd really rather not."

"This is quite strange though," Fred mused, "I mean, I thought we'd all shagged by now. I mean, even Hugo has-"

"Hey! Don't talk about my little brother doing the nasty, please, Fred, I don't think I could take it," Rose put a hand over her forehead.

"Aw, come on," James teased, "don't you want to hear about that Ravenclaw bird in his year who he shagged in her common room the week before your graduation?"

"James!" Rose yelled, "How would you like for me to tell you about Lily's sex life?"

He laughed, "That's different, my little sister doesn't have a sex life."

Fred, Al, and Rose all exchanged looks before laughing. "Think about it, mate," said Fred, "she's dating a bloke who is about to turn eighteen. They've been dating for years now. Lily's going into her sixth year."

"Stop!" James clapped his hands over his ears, "Lily is an innocent pure little girl!"

"Can we please get back on topic?" Rose snapped.

"Oh, right," said Fred importantly, In answer to your first question; yes, it will probably hurt. But you never know. Some girls say it's not bad, really. A lot depends on the bloke, and I'm not just talking about size. If he knows what he's doing, it won't be as painful."

Rose nodded, looking very much like she was in class. "Okay. Got it. Probably painful. Does it feel good at all? Ever?"

"Yes." Albus was trying hard not to chuckle now and Rose could tell, "Maybe not the first time, but it's definitely supposed to feel good for both parties involved."

"Why are you asking us these things anyway?" James wondered, "I feel like your questions could be answered better by other girls. Why don't we ask Leila to come over here and talk to you?"

Rose scrunched up her nose, "I trust you guys. You're my best mates. I don't think I could talk to anyone else about this. Not even Leila."

"Wait! James...you and Leila...did you...YOU DID!"

"What?" James's tone was a bit too innocent to be believable, "What would you give you the idea that anything happened?"

"You have a tell," Albus supplied.

"A tell?" Rose scooched forward on the coffee table, closer to the boys, with interest.

"A tell is when something in your behavior lets others know something about you. Everyone has a tell when they lie. For example, when Roxanne lies, she always scratches her nose a minute later. Some people, like James, have a tell when they have sex."

"I do not!" James whined.

"Yes, you do," Albus and Fred said this at the same time.

"What is it then?"

"If we told you then we wouldn't be able to tell anymore."

"Do you really want to know every time I have sex? If you do, I could just tell you. Yes, I did have intimate relations with my fiance last night."

"We'll tell you!" Fred declared, not wanting to hear anymore, "Your tell is that you mess up your hair all day after you shag the night before."

"I do not," even as he said this, his hand was in his hair musing it. He hurried to fold his hands together and put them in his lap.

"Does it make you feel any different?" asked Rose.

"How do you mean?"

"I mean, will I feel different? Suddenly older or something?"

"No," said Fred, "I always thought that I would be different, but it didn't happen. I also thought everyone would always be able to tell. Like there would be a sign over my head saying, 'just lost my virginity' or something, but that didn't happen, either." he sounded wistful.

"Is there anything else I should know?"

"Honestly, Rose, my best advice is to let Malfoy take the lead. I'm pretty sure he'll know what he's doing," Albus said wisely.

"I'm afraid. I don't trust him. What if he hurts me?"

"We'll kill him," said James seriously.

Rose started fidgeting uncomfortablely and Albus reached to take hold of her arm and pulled her onto his lap. "It will be fine. Hell, you might even love it."

"I'm more afraid of sex with Scorpius than I am of sex in general. If I had done things the right way, met someone, fell in love, got engaged, then I would probably be a lot more okay with this."

"Okay, so Al's final piece of advice was to let Malfoy take the lead. My final piece of advice is to work up to it. Don't just jump into bed on your wedding night having never snogged him properly before. Next time you see him, kiss him. Then, maybe in a week or so, things can go a little further and a little further until by the time your wedding rolls around you're not so uncomfortable with physical intimacy."

"Wow, Fred," said James with wide eyes, "That was...really mature, actually."

"Thank you," said Fred, doing a perfect imitation of his Uncle Percy, including a snooty look and everything.

"My turn! Final advice! Hmm...don't over think it. This isn't something you can learn out of a book, Rosie."

"Sure it is," Rose brushed this aside and pulled three large books out from under the coffee table, "I picked these up from Flourish and Blotts this morning. Books about sex."

"Sweet Merlin," James slapped a hand to his forehead, "Trust me, Rose, you can't learn it from a book. You have to experience it yourself and learn from actual doing."

"Thanks for talking with me," she brushed her hair back behind her ear and her words were an obvious end to the conversation.

"No problem. Come on, Fred, I want you to see my new place." James nudged his best friend and they left the flat without even saying goodbye.

"Well, what are you going to do?" Albus could tell by the look on her face that Rose was forming a plan.

"I need to get to know him better. From now on, I'm going to spend as much time with him as possible."

"Hey! I thought you said you were going to spend as much time with me as you could before you got married!"

"Really, Al, which is more important? Getting to know my fiance or spending time with the guy I already know like the back of my wand?"

He grumbled a bit but knew she was right. "Fine. What does he even do? I don't think I've seen him go to work."

"He starts training in a month," she replied evasively.

"Training for what?"

"...For being an Auror."

Albus threw his head back in laughter. He was going to be in Auror training with Scorpius Malfoy. This entire situation couldn't get any more amusing.

...

"What in the name of Merlin's Pants are you doing?" Draco Malfoy stood in the doorway of a usually empty room in his home, gaping at his son as Scorpius manually pushed a beautiful grand piano to the center of the room.

"Making a music room," Scorpius panted.

"Why?" Even more than that, Draco was wondering why he was moving furniture the muggle way.

"For Rose. She likes music. When you married Mum you made her a personal garden. Now I'm making Rose a personal music room."

Draco blinked at his son for a few silent moments before turning and striding away, having nothing to say. Scorpius smirked at the now empty doorway and continued with his work.

"Scorpius?" Not a long while later, his mother came in to inspect how the room was coming. It was gorgeous. All sorts of instruments were all around the room, along with several pieces of expensive artwork adorning the walls, both muggle and magical. The magical ones were easy to distinguish from the muggle ones as they were moving.

"Yes?" Scorpius had the sleeves on his shirt rolled up to his elbows and his dark jeans were just a bit loose on him.

"Rose Weasley is here."

"Mum," said Scorpius as he brushed past her, "you don't have to introduce her by her full name. Also, don't let her near that room yet!"

"I won't!" Astoria Malfoy called after her son.

Scorpius ran to his room, as he was sure that was where the Floo would have deposited his bride-to-be. Thankfully he wasn't far from it. Just down the hall a bit. He hesitated when he saw her. She was sitting at the foot of his bed, just looking around casually. Her red hair was the way he liked it; a bright curly mess. She was wearing another sundress. This one was blue, which went very well with her hair and eyes. Dark midnight blue. It had a halter top and fanned out from her waist. It reached below her knee in a modest way but it still affected Scorpius in ways he wasn't entirely comfortable with yet.

"Hi," she said and her ears tinged red.

"Rose," Scorpius smiled at her and was glad to find that it was a genuine smile. It made him happy that she was making an effort. This was the second day in a row she had come to him.

"I think it's a good idea if we spend more time together. I understand if you, um, don't want to or if you think this is a bad idea."

"Actually, I reckon that's a good idea. I was going to owl you soon and ask if you wanted to spend the evening at your flat watching muggle movies with me?"

"You...want to watch muggle movies?"

"Well, yeah. I like them and I can't watch them in the Manor because nothing electronic-"

"-works around large amounts of magic. Right." Rose finished his sentence for him.

"So what do you think?"

She bit her lip in a way that Scorpius believed should be illegal. "I suppose that would be fine. Do you want to pick the movie?"

"No, you can. You probably know a lot more muggle movies than I do."

Out of nowhere her face lit up, "Let's go together! There's a video rental store just up the block from my flat."

"A what?"

Rose giggled. Scorpius liked the sound. He decided that he needed to do what he could to make her make that sound again. Often. "I'm going to have too much fun introducing you to muggle things."

Scorpius was inwardly pleased that Rose was being so open today. Perhaps Albus had put in a good word for him like he promised he would. "You're an excellent baker, by the way. Mum, Dad, and I all tried some of the things you brought over yesterday and they were all delicious. Dad even asked me twice to make sure that you knew where the kitchen was in this place."

Rose beamed at him. "I'm so glad. I do want your family to like me."

"What about me?" Scorpius asked this softly. "Do you want me to like you, too?"

"Of course," said Rose as the red returned to the tips of her ears.

"Would you teach me how to make those muffins that you brought? That would be a good start."

Rose giggled again and Scorpius felt like he might be starting to get to know her just a little bit. "Lead the way," she motioned for him to lead her to the kitchens.

...

"No," despite the reprimand in her tone, Rose was sporting a gorgeous smile.

"Well why not? I think it's bloody brilliant. Just consider it, Rose. Imagine biting into one of those delicious muffins and finding a peppermint humbug in the center! Or a chocolate frog!"

The mental image of a hopping muffin popped up in Rose's mind and she doubled over in laughter. Scorpius was laughing, too, as he flicked his wand at the muffins, causing them to start bouncing up and down on the counter. "See? Brilliant!" he declared.

The kitchen around them was a mess. Ingredients that were included in the muffin recipe coated the floor, counters, and the two people in the kitchen. Rose stepped toward the counter to get her own wand but slipped on the mess on the floor. She felt herself tumbling forward, straight into Scorpius's chest.

He caught her easily, wrapped his arms around her and the scent of her hair had him barely suppressing a groan. It had been months since he'd been with a girl, and the one in his arms was particularly pretty. Plus she was engaged to him. Too bad she didn't fancy him and probably didn't have any intentions of shagging him any time soon.

"Easy there," he encouraged softly. Without conscious thought, his hand went up to stroke her hair. Rose felt this and couldn't help the tingling sensation that erupted in her stomach. She jerked back away from him, steady on her own two feet, cleared her throat and plucked up her wand.

With one swish the muffins sat motionless on the plate. "I'll consider adding chocolate frogs to the list of ingredients," she consented reluctantly.

Now that his hands weren't on her, Scorpius was unsure of what to do with them. It had been years since he felt shy and awkward around a pretty girl, but Rose was different. Not just because of their situation, either, but because she just was. He settled on putting his hands in the pockets of his jeans. "Whatever you think is best. You're the baker."

"I think I'm going to go home for a bit. Meet me at my flat at six o'clock tonight, okay? Is that a good time?"

"It's a perfect time."

Rose's red lips pulled up at the corners, "Excellent. See you then."

"Bye, Rose," Scorpius watched as she crossed the kitchen to the fireplace and disappeared in spinning green flames.

...

"You got Rose Weasley? Merlin, don't let Nathan or Zach know!" Liam Jackson had finally contacted Scorpius by Flooing into his bedroom not long after Rose had left.

"Trust me, mate, I'm keeping this as secret as I possibly can. Of course, she's a bloody Weasley so the press is salvating to know who they're all marrying."

Liam groaned in sympathy and laid back on Scorpius's bed. "What's she like anyway?"

"I'll let you know as soon as I figure her out," Scorpius promised. "How about you? Who are you with?"

"Ophelia Bones."

"I bet you're happy. She's what? Two years older than us and bloody gorgeous. I remember her when she was at Hogwarts."

"Yeah, she's alright...I guess.."

"Liam?"

"I guess I was just hoping that maybe Adara would have put my name down..." he trailed off and frowned. Liam was one of the very few half-bloods who knew that the purebloods had the privilage of requesting the person they wanted to marry.

"She probably did. She's fancied you for years. Not that it matters now," Scorpius leaned back in the chair he was sitting in beside his fireplace.

"What? Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"I thought you knew. She made it kind of obvious. Don't you remember all of those times she asked you to do things with her but didn't ask me to come along? Like studying in the library and working on homework by the lake..."

"Fuck. I can't believe I didn't realize it sooner! What the fuck is wrong with me?"

"Aside from everything? Oof!" Liam had thrown a pillow at Scorpius that caught him in the face.

"Was Rose your first choice?" Scorpius didn't say anything, just nodded. "Do you...fancy her?"

"No, but I hope I will. The date they gave us is the 21st of July."

Liam gave a low whistle, "Less than a month, mate."

"I know. I'm trying really hard. I want us to at least be friends."

"With benefits," Liam waggled his eyebrows at Scorpius, "Admit it, Scor, Rose is fucking gorgeous. You can't tell me you're not looking forward to shagging her."

"Of course I am. I've actually been thinking about that a lot lately. She was over here today and we were baking muffins. She bent down in front of the oven and I couldn't stop my imagination from running wild. I was standing right behind her for Merlin's sake! But I'm sure it's going to be a while before she's ready for that and I don't want to mess anything up by trying for it too soon. We haven't even snogged yet."

Liam considered this and said, "You made muffins? Are there any left or did you eat them all? Don't give me that look, I'm bloody starving!"

...

"Albus! You need to leave the flat for the evening."

"What? Why?" Albus was lying on the couch watching the telly when Rose arrived home from Malfoy Manor.

"I have a date with Scorpius. He wants to come over here and watch movies."

"Ugh. Does that mean I need to stay out all night? I don't want to walk in on the two of you fucking like rabbits."

"Oh please," Rose scowled, "you know that's not going to happen. I can barely hold the guy's hand."

"You need to get over that, Rose. Don't forget what Fred told you. You should work up to shagging."

Rose lifted Albus's feet, sat down, and set his feet back down on her lap. "I...can't. I know that I should. I know that I don't want to be scared shitless on my wedding night, but I just don't see myself snogging him, let alone taking his clothes off and riding his cock like a Firebolt."

Albus laughed heartily at this, "Rose, if you really think that riding a cock is like riding a broomstick you really are ignorant about sex. Either that or you've been riding a broomstick in a very wrong way for years."

"Oh shut up, you prat, it's just an expression. I've heard the girls use it in the dorm room."

"Ah," said Al as if he'd just realized something important, "I've always wondered how they described it. Riding...like a Firebolt...huh...that's kinda hot..." he tossed the saying around in his head a bit.

"Just...be out of here by six, alright?"

"Sure thing. Just don't let me catch him giving you any _flying _lessons on his _Firebolt_," Albus said cheekily.

...

At six o'clock sharp Scorpius knocked on her door. She answered with a big smile and he felt his face mirroring hers. "Right on time," she complimented.

"I always am," he offered her his arm and she wrapped her hand tentatively around it. As they walked to the video rental store they chatted about little things; what they did that day, how their families were doing.

Scorpius had quite the time in the store. As it turned out, he wanted to see just about every movie they had on the shelves. He was particularly interested in muggle horror movies. "No, absolutely not," Rose had a very stern face.

"How scary can it honestly be? I mean, the murderer's weapon of choice is a butcher knife. If someone with a butcher knife came after you, all you would have to do is _Stupefy _his dumb arse and contact the muggle...Auror...people."

"I said 'no'!" Rose snarled, "I don't watch scary movies; muggle or magical. They scare the pants off me!"

Scorpius looked her up and down with his eyebrows raised. His expression clearly said that he wouldn't mind her getting the pants scared off of her. She playfully slapped his arm. He was quick to make the suggestion,"Think of it like a mystery. You can focus on trying to figure out who the killer is."

"Listen. You should probably know this about me because it's important. I don't. Watch. Scary. Movies. Albus would positively murder you if you made me watch one."

"Why?"

"Because it's impossible for me to sleep alone when I'm scared. I would end up crawling in bed with him every night for the next week."

"I would take full responsibility for you," Scorpius vowed, "and if you had to crawl in bed with me every night, I promise I wouldn't mind one bit or say one word against it." Lust started bubbling in his stomach at the thought of Rose climbing into bed with him in the middle of the night.

Before his imagination could get too carried away, she brought his attention back to movies, "I prefer comedies."

Scorpius was determined to get Rose to become closer to him. If she was scared, she might look to him as a protector. But if they watched a comedy, she would probably continue looking at him as just a mate. Perhaps they could compromise. "What about that section of romantic comedies?"

Rose beamed at him, "Perfect!"

...

They were seated side-by-side on the sofa. Not touching. Not even their legs. Rose had hers curled up under her and Scorpius's long legs were stretched out under the coffee table. The movie had only been playing for maybe ten minutes and he was captivated. By the movie and the witch beside him.

He was happy to announce that he was really enjoying the time he spent with her. In her own flat, around her own things, she was much more herself and much more relaxed. Once or twice she seemed aware of this and started clamming up, but he would eventually pull her out of it.

Scorpius had a bowl of popcorn balanced on his thigh and every once in a while Rose would reach over, her eyes still on the screen, grab a handful, and pull it up to her mouth. Every time she reached her hand toward him he got just a little bit hornier as he imagined her hand reaching for a place that was just a bit further up and to the right of the popcorn bowl.

Instinctively, he leaned toward her and put his arm around her shoulders. Rose stiffened. How was she supposed to react to this? When he did not remove his arm, she reluctantly leaned into him. Just a little. It wasn't bad, honestly. Just different. She snuggled against his shoulder. It was more comfortable to watch movies like this she realized with a jolt.

Half-way through the movie, she'd fallen asleep. Once Scorpius realized this, he tried to keep his laughter at a minimum but these silly muggles on the screen were just much too humorous. When the movie ended and the credits started to roll, Scorpius gave a yawn and picked up the remote that was lying next to him.

What were all of these buttons? After reading them all thoroughly, he decided to press the one labeled, "_Stop_." It worked! The movie stopped but the telly came on. He debated on flipping through the channels, but was distracted when Rose mumbled something in her sleep.

With a quirked eyebrow he looked over at the girl sleeping on his shoulder, with her arm wrapped around his middle, and focused on her. In some ways she acted exactly like an immature seventeen year old girl. In other ways she was so mature and thoughtful it made him feel like the immature one.

She was mumbling again and Scorpius leaned his ear down closer to hear, "Albus...no...don't want...green eyebrows."

Scorpius's entire body shook with laughter at that. Not only did his future wife talk in her sleep, but even in her dreams she was angry at her cousin for something. Apparently that was all he was going to hear because at that moment, the door of the flat swung open and Albus Potter came in with a hand clapped over his eyes.

"If either of you are dressed indecently or if you are currently shagging on the sofa, please remove your persons from the room!"

Rose woke up with a start. She pulled away from Scorpius instantly and snapped, "We're decent, you prat!"

Al peeked out between his fingers, appraised them, and said, "Wow, you got dressed fast."

With a flick of her wand, a steady stream of cushions flew from the end directly into Albus. "Oof! I was just kidding! Ouch! Bloody hell, Rose!"

He ran, dodging cushions all the way, to his bedroom, slamming the door shut behind him. Scorpius was laughing. "I guess that's my cue to leave."

"I'm so sorry I fell asleep! I haven't been sleeping well lately, and you were just so bloody comfortable-" at that moment her eyes widened as she realized what she had said and her face started to turn red.

A smirk made its way onto his face, "I'm glad. Don't apologize about falling asleep. I still had a good time with you."

She gave him a small smile. They stood up at the same time and she walked him to the door. "Thank you for suggesting this date. I'm happy that you're open to trying muggle things."

Scorpius stared into her deep blue eyes with such intensity that Rose couldn't look away. They were standing very close and he was starting to lean down. Panic erupted in Rose. She wasn't ready for this! At the last moment, she turned her head to the side and felt his nose brush against her cheek. The phrase _crisis averted _echoed in her mind.

He contented himself with a light kiss on her cheek. In a tone that gave away none of the frustration he felt, he said, "Goodnight, Rose," and left.

She closed the door behind him as she started to hyperventilate. The opportunity had been perfect. Their evening was great, she had a good time with him, he was fun, and nice. Not to mention there were only 28 days until the wedding. But she just couldn't snog him.

Having heard the door close, Albus came striding into the sitting room looking apprehensive. "How was your date?"

"Alright, I suppose. He was...Al, he was so nice. Not overly nice in a fake way, but in a genuine way." She made a face like she didn't appreciate this, but Albus knew that in reality Rose was probably starting to develop a small crush on the guy. "He teased me a bit but in a good way, like how you or James would."

"Did you snog him?"

"No. I think he wanted to. I mean, he leaned down toward my face but I turned away and he kissed my cheek instead."

"Merlin, Rose! You're a Gryffindor! Shouldn't you be brave?"

"I am brave! I just..." Rose frowned. What was she? In a rush she closed her eyes and said, "You know me better than anyone, Albus. If the Sorting Hat would have considered me for any other house, what would it have been?"

Albus stroked his chin thoughtfully, "Ravenclaw," he decided.

She bit her lip and shook her head, "It almost put me in Slytherin, Al. That dumb Hat told me things about myself that I tried vehemently to ignore but they were true. I might be brave and loyal and all of that, but I also distrust most people. Unlike most Gryffindors, I don't rush head first into situations. I assess them first, and sometimes...sometimes," Rose flushed in embarrassment, "I can be rather selfish."

"Well get over it," Albus's words made Rose's head snap up as she had been looking down at her feet. She surely hadn't expected him to say that. She thought he might scoff at her in disgust or perhaps try to reassure her that she didn't have any Slytherin traits in her, but no.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, stop acting like this is all about you. This is difficult for Malfoy, too, and he's trying damn hard to get you to like him. Perhaps you should put your own selfish arse second and consider his feelings, too."

Without waiting for her reaction, Albus left Rose gaping after him as he retreated to his bedroom.

...

Rose couldn't sleep that night. Her thoughts kept going back to Al's words and it hurt like hell because he was right. And she hated that. Now, she found herself in a dress shop with Leila, Aunt Luna, Aunt Ginny, Lily, and Roxanne.

Having no sisters or female cousins, Leila had chosen Lily as her maid of honour, and Roxanne and Rose as her two bridesmaids. This didn't surprise anyone. Leila, like Rose, wasn't very close to many girls. So she had chosen James's sister and his two favorite cousins.

Luna and Leila were arguing about the wedding dress colour. "I don't care if yellow is a sun colour," Leila was saying, "I want my wedding dress to be a traditional white."

"But dear, let's be honest about this. White is a pure colour and I know you and James have made love before."

"Mum!"

"I just think yellow is a more fitting colour."

"Ginny! Help!"

"Luna," Ginny came to Leila's rescue, "it's her wedding, don't you think she should have the liberty to choose the colour of her own dress?"

"Well, alright," in spite of her words, Luna was fingering her wand as if she'd love to charm it yellow.

Rose had to give Leila some credit. She chose a gorgeous dress, even if it was not what she would have chosen for herself. Flowers covered the bottom of the dress and the top was silk that complimented Leila's curves nicely. It had only one strap that was made of flowers.

**(A/N: I searched online for a while before I found a dress that I could picture Leila choosing. I am not sure if links show up on here, but if they do then here is a link to an image of the dress I imagine Leila in: **** www. ****).**

The bridesmaid dresses were something that Rose, however, did not approve of entirely. To appease her mother, Leila chose a pretty shade of yellow that clashed just a little with Lily's and Rose's hair, but went well with Roxie's dark locks. It was one-shoulder, just like Leila's wedding dress, but in Rose's opinion, it was simply much too short. She felt like she was wearing modest lingerie.

**(A/N: If it shows up, here's a link to the image of the bridesmaid dresses I picture: **** . /user/10244634/upload/images/lg/co0849_ ****).**

"When will we be helping you shop for your dress?" Roxie asked Rose as the two of them went into the same dressing room to change back into their plain muggle attire.

"Ugh. I don't know. What about you? How are things with Calvin?" Rose hadn't spoken to Roxie in a few weeks and they were using this dress shopping time as a chance to catch up. Calvin and Roxanne had been dating for almost one year when this law went into effect.

Now that Rose thought about it, a lot of the couples she knew of were already dating; Louis and Verity, Roxanne and Calvin, even James and Leila were headed in that direction before the Ministry forced them into it early. That, coupled with the fact that arranged marriages were already fairly common in the wizard world, had been why the community hadn't made too much of a fuss about the new law.

The only person who Rose knew must be miserable was Dominique. One out of all of her cousins wasn't exactly a bad ratio. Even if people grumbled a bit, most weren't vehemently opposed to the law.

"We're doing well," Roxanne replied, "Actually, when this law went into effect we were a little relieved."

"What? Why?" Rose was shocked.

"The day I got the letter saying that Calvin and I were to be married, I also found out that I'm pregnant."

Rose gasped and hugged her cousin tightly. "Congratulations! That's so wonderful! I still don't understand why you were relieved...?"

"Cal asked my dad a month ago for his blessing to ask me to marry him, and my dad pitched a fit worthy of Uncle Ron. He said that we hadn't been dating long enough and that I was too young. I'm twenty-one years old! So if we had to go to my parents and tell them I was pregnant dad probably would have murdered Cal. Now, though, we're engaged and we don't plan on telling anyone about the baby until after the wedding. Except for you, obviously."

"Why me?"

Roxanne shrugged, "I needed someone to talk to about it. I'm awfully nervous but also excited. Who else to talk to than my favorite cousin? But if you tell my brother I swear to Merlin I will-"

" Oh, calm down. Fred may be one of my best mates, but I know how to keep a secret."

Now dressed, the two girls exited the changing room grinning at each other. "Took you long enough," said Lily as they found the other women waiting for them.

"Sorry," said Rose and Roxie together before giggling mischievously.


	6. Storm

**A/N: Full author's note at the end. I just wanted to say the reason I titled this chapter "Storm" is because it's a storm of different emotions from all of the characters and Scorpius is hit with his own internal storm at the end of the chapter.**

**WARNING: Sexual content, language, and violence in this chapter**

**DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.**

…**.**

"Damn Albus Potter. Damn my own conscience." Rose was wearing her favorite pair of muggle jeans and a plain red tank top as she paced in front of her fireplace. Because of her own feelings of guilt, she hadn't seen Scorpius at all the day before. He'd owled her, of course, but she gave him the excuse of wedding dress shopping with Leila and the girls.

In reality she just needed time to think and to dig deep down for some of that famed Gryffindor courage. In the end she decided to try acting. She would pretend that she was just an average girl on a date with an average guy.

There was a knock on the door. "YOU GET IT!" Rose shrieked, pointing a dramatic finger at Al who had been watching her pace with great amusement. They both knew who was waiting on the other side.

"Hey, Scorpius," Al said easily as he greeted their visitor.

"Hey, Albus. Is Rose ready?"

"Not really," Al glanced over at his cousin, who was cowering just out of sight of her fiance, behind the door. "But she's as ready as she's going to get. Come on, Rosie, Malfoy's here to take you on your date."

She emerged from around the corner with a small smile. It made her happy to see Scorpius standing there looking so handsome. He didn't have his father's pointed features, but instead inherited his mother's round face and model-like features.

"Where are we going?" he asked her curiously. Because even though he was there to pick her up, she was the one who had planned this date.

"Flourish and Blotts," she told him curtly.

Albus chuckled but was silenced when Rose shot him a dirty glare. Scorpius looked politely bemused. "Just...the bookstore?"

"Flourish and Blotts is not just a bookstore! It's a magical bookstore and I love it and it's wonderful," she argued vehemently.

"Alright, alright, I get it," Scorpius was smirking down at her, "to Flourish and Blotts it is. My lady?" he extended his arm for her to take.

Rose took a deep breath as she prepared herself to treat this like a date. She would act like a proper girlfriend. For all intents and purposes she was much more than just a girlfriend; she was a fiance. A clamy hand tucked itself into the crook of his elbow and they started on their way.

"Would you like me to Apparate us there?" He offered as they reached the street.

"No," Rose's objection had been because she didn't trust him enough to let him Apparate her anywhere. However, she was mentally berating herself. It was a polite offer. "Erm, yes, go ahead, I guess," she corrected herself.

"Alright, hold tight," Scorpius was rewarded with a soft "oh!" of surprise when he wrapped both arms around her, pulling her close, before he spun them around and Apparated them away.

Diagon Alley was one of Rose's most favorite places in the whole world. Normally, she would keep these errant thoughts to herself, but this whole date was about showing Malfoy that she was making an effort. "I love this place. Diagon Alley is one of the most wonderful places I've ever been. It's just so magical."

Scorpius drew his eyebrows together. "Huh, I've always thought so, too," he looked confused for a moment, then added, "I've never told anyone that, though, because I thought it was a bit silly. I mean, of course it's magical, the whole world is full of magic. It's just that muggles-"

"-are always too busy to stop and notice what's actually going on in the world around them?"

"Yeah! And Diagon Alley is...well it's like what all of London would be like if muggles weren't so afraid of magic and if we weren't under the Statute of Secrecy."

"Exactly," Rose was beaming as they walked toward her favourite store. Opening up to Scorpius might take some effort, but she was beginning to think that it might just be worth it.

Her plan for this date had taken a lot of thought and preparation. She wanted to express to Scorpius, and to herself, that she could be selfless. That she wanted this to work as much as he did. Rose Weasley was nothing if not a hard worker, and she would work damn hard to make herself and Scorpius as happy as they could be considering the circumstances.

"Here we are," Scorpius still sounded bemused. He opened the door for her and Rose went in first.

In the center of the bookstore was a desk. Behind the desk sat an older gentleman who was smiling at the large crowd gathered around him. On the desk, propped up, was several books. His name was also on a small plaque on the desk: Samuel Perkins.

Scorpius froze in the doorway. Rose was smiling broadly up at him. Without lingering too much on the thought of what she was about to do, she stretched up to whisper in his ear, "Surprise."

His expression could only be described as bewildered as he glanced down at her smiling face. "You...arranged this? But I thought he didn't do book signings anymore!" Scorpius sounded breathless with excitement.

"You mentioned a few days ago, at your mansion, that he was your favorite author," Rose finally revealed her secret, "I sent him an owl the other night, after you left my flat when we watched that movie. He agreed to do one more signing before continuing to enjoy his retirement."

Scorpius pulled Rose to the side as more people came through the door to meet Samuel Perkins. He'd written several books, most of them historical fiction; love stories of couples in the Second Wizarding War. A few of his works were non-fiction history books, one personal biography, and one book of poetry. He was a very famous author in the wizarding world.

"This is...amazing, Rose. Just amazing." He couldn't find words to express his appreciation. "It means so much to me. I can't believe you would put this much effort into something for me."

She kept on smiling, glad of her decision to put effort into this and making him happy. "Here," she opened her purse and began to extract many hardcover books. "I also had Rin bring me these from your bedroom. Go get them signed!"

Rose and Scorpius got in line. When they finally reached the man, she extended her hand for him to shake, "Rose Weasley, Mr. Perkins," she introduced herself.

"Ah, Miss Rose! I'm so glad to meet you. Your letter really inspired me. I haven't done a book signing in over a decade. This must be the lucky young man who you're marrying? Scorpius Malfoy, I'm Samuel Perkins, but I think you already knew that."

They shook hands briefly, before he signed all of Scorpius's books. "It's an honour to meet you, Sir," said Scorpius as Rose put the books back into her purse, one at a time. Undetectable Extension Charms sure came in handy.

"You as well, Scorpius," Perkins boomed, "you have quite the witch here. Take care of her."

"I will, Sir," Scorpius vowed as he instinctively wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him.

"Have a wonderful day, Mr. Perkins," said Rose sincerely. He waved to them cheerfully as they exited the shop. "So," she couldn't help the smug tone in her voice, "was this the best date ever or was this the best date ever?"

She turned her head to look up at him and was caught entirely off guard when soft lips crashed down onto her own. One moment they'd been walking away from the bookstore, and the next she found herself pinned against a brick wall, just out of sight of the people moving busily through Diagon Alley.

Rose had snogged boys before. But only two. Neither bloke had been a particularly good kisser. The first had been very rough and the second had been very sloppy and wet. Scorpius was something entirely different. His lips were soft, gentle, but also somehow managed to be..._hungry_. That was the only word she could think to describe it. His lips ate at hers like he had been craving her and now that he had a taste he wasn't going to stop.

She wouldn't mind if he didn't. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she realized that somehow Scorpius had done it. He had caught her in a moment when her walls were down and pounced. She didn't even have time to turn away or stop him from snogging her; he'd just done it.

Merlin, Circe, and Morgana, he tasted divine. Rose sighed into his mouth and trembled when he groaned in response. His mouth moved with experience against hers, causing her brain to stop thinking all together.

His chest was pressed firmly against hers and she was secretly glad that she hadn't worn anything over the tank top. Hot kisses pressed against her lips a few more times before they trailed across her jaw and up to her ear. With laboured breathing he whispered, "Yes, this has definitely been the best date ever."

Rose snapped her eyes open, finally coming to her senses. She put her hands on his strong shoulders and pushed softly. He obliged, moving away from her. "Scorpius Malfoy, don't you ever snog me without my permission ever again." She said this firmly, with a finger jabbing him in the chest.

Scorpius's smirk was smug as he took in the sight before him. Rose was panting from the effects of his kissing expertise. Her hair, which she had tamed fairly well that morning, was messy now, and her tank top had been pulled down so the tops of her breasts were peaking up out of it. He could see edges of the pink lace of her bra and snapped his eyes back to her face before he could get even more turned on. She was glaring at him and those ocean blue eyes he enjoyed gazing into were dark with a mixture of anger and lust.

"I apologize for snogging you without your permission. But, Merlin, Rose! If I wait until you give me permission we won't snog until we're standing in front of the bloody Ministry Official on our wedding day!"

Rose flushed at his accusing words, "You never know."

Not wanting to ruin their date right after they had such an excellent time at the bookstore, he was quick to say, "I just wanted to express to you how much your surprise meant to me. I'm truly touched at the thought you put into it."

"You're welcome," her words were stiff and for one horrible moment Scorpius thought he might have wrecked everything by kissing her too soon. Had he not been patient enough? But his worries were unwarranted as Rose twined her fingers with his and said, "Let's get some ice cream, yeah? I feel like we both need to cool off now." Somehow, Scorpius knew she wasn't talking about cooling down from the heated argument, but rather, the heated snogging.

...

"No. I'm sorry, but Oliver Simon Gerard Gavin Franklin Potter is out of the question," James said with the utmost of seriousness.

"It's all of my favorite boy names put together!" Leila said as the two sat discussing possible names for their future children. The whole conversation had come about when Lily visited their new home.

She was sure to point out that house had four bedrooms; one for each child if they had three children. Thus the arguments had started. "Exactly. If we name our child all of your favorite names in one, then what will we name the second one?"

"The second one will be a girl," said Leila shortly, "I'm not going to name a girl any of those names."

"What if we have two boys?"

"Then your sperm and I are going to have a very serious chat. Do you hear that?" she tilted her head down to talk to his trousers, "attention, James's Little Swimmers, I'm only having one son, is that clear? The rest of you that impregnate me had better have an X chromosome!"

James wasn't sure whether to laugh or send his wife to St. Mungo's to have her head checked. "I don't think they have a choice in the matter, love. Also, please don't ever talk to my trousers again. They was very disconcerting."

Leila grinned up at him wickedly, "Perhaps you wouldn't mind as much if my mouth was closer," she undid the snap and pulled the zipper down so slowly it was almost torturous. Of course, Leila did this on purpose. The anticipation aroused James so by the time she tugged his trousers down, he was rock hard.

Experimentally, she dipped her tongue out and swirled it around the tip of his waiting cock. He groaned and tangled both of his hands into her blonde hair. It was one of the hottest things he'd ever seen as she moved her mouth lower and lower so he was getting deeper and deeper.

He groaned and let himself relax into the sofa he was sitting on as Leila moved to kneel in front of him on the rug of their sitting room. The room was quickly filled with James's contented sounds as she continued sucking on him. As he got closer and closer to his peak, he started thrusting up, fucking her mouth.

She moaned in pleasure at his actions and his whole body shook as he released himself down her throat. Not a moment too soon, either, because as soon as he was finished, before he was able to form a cohesive sentence, the doorbell rang.

"Fuck," he snarled as his weak muscles moved to pull his trousers up.

Leila giggled, "I'll get it, love," she danced over to the door, knowing that James's eyes were on her swaying hips the whole way. "Hullo, Freddie," she greeted him brightly as he entered the house.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," he said with a waggle of his eyebrows.

"No," said James as he mused his hair. Fred smirked.

...

The date was over. Rose expected to feel relieved but instead found that she was sad about this. She was really having a good time. After their ice cream, they'd visited a few other shops in Diagon Alley and were on their way to The Leaky Cauldron for a quick drink before he took her home.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Scorpius's grip on Rose's hand tightened as he heard that voice. "So is this why you never responded to my letter asking who my favorite cousin was marrying?"

Scorpius swore under his breath as he turned their bodies to face Nathan Zabini. "Nathan," Scorpius snarled the name in a clear warning.

"Scorpius," Nathan was smiling in a sinister way that had Rose leaning even more into her fiance. "Rose," her name sounded like velvet poison falling from his lips, "how are you doing, love? Happy with the bloke the Ministry picked for you?"

Scorpius stiffened significantly. He knew what Nathan was doing. Trying to figure out if Rose knew that Scorpius had picked her. Thank Merlin her response didn't really give him an answer, "Yes, I am," Rose didn't know why but she felt vulnerable and in danger in Zabini's presence.

Somewhere, deep in her mind, a voice was telling her to act totally in love with Scorpius. Drive Nathan away. "Are you sure? You wouldn't prefer a wizard who could make you happier than your wildest dreams?"

"Apparently this one time the Ministry knew what it was doing. Scorpius has made me very happy," she batted her eyelashes up at him. His fingers squeezed her hip gently, as if encouraging her.

"You don't find him to be...lacking...in certain areas?" His sexual meaning was obvious.

"Not at all," Rose let some heat creep into her gaze and voice, "I haven't felt this satisfied in ages."

Scorpius bit the inside of his cheeks to supress the noises he wanted to make when he heard her say this. "Now, if you'll excuse us, Nathan," Scorpius moved to turn their bodies away from him, but Nathan stopped him with a firm hand on his shoulder.

"I haven't received an invitation to the wedding yet," his smile didn't reach his eyes.

"I'll let Mum know, she's the one in charge of invitations. As far as I know she hasn't sent them out yet. Darling, do you know if Mum sent out the invitations?"

"No, she hasn't yet. She wanted you to look them over and give them your approval first," Rose was pulling this entirely out of her arse.

"Ah, so that's what she wanted this morning when she came barging into my bedroom. Bit embarrassing the position she caught us in," he commented lightly. Rose couldn't help it; she blushed scarlet. Scorpius laughed lightly, "Not still shy around me, are you? Surely not after all of the things we've done."

"Not in front of your cousin, love," there was a perfect balance of flirtation and reprimand in her words. "I'll make sure to address an invitation to you personally, Nathan, see you later."

"I look forward to your owl," he said as they walked away. As he lost sight of them in the crowds of people in Diagon Alley, Nathan smiled darkly as he rolled the strand of blonde hair between his fingers that he had plucked off of Scorpius's shoulder.

...

"Can I see you tonight?" Scorpius asked hopefully as they stood on the doorstep of Rose's flat. It was only one o'clock in the afternoon after all.

Rose bit her lip in a flirtatious way, pretending to consider, "Yes," she sighed, "I suppose, if you really want to."

"I really want to," Scorpius was smiling at her. Honestly, he'd never had such a wonderful date before. He hadn't been lying when he had said it was the best date ever.

"Another movie? We rented two the other night but only got to watch one..."

"Yes, that would be great. Six o'clock again?"

"Al has a date with Norah at six, so that would be perfect."

"See you then," not daring to kiss her without permission, he gave her a small hug and left.

Rose came into the flat grinning like a fool. "How did it go?" Al's voice was patronizing as it had obviously gone very well.

"I think..." Rose looked confused, "I think he's a good bloke."

Albus snorted. "Just admit that you're starting to fancy him."

"You're a prat."

"A prat who is right."

"A prat who is going to get his arse kicked if he keeps bothering me about this."

He chuckled, "I'll be out of your hair soon. I'm going to James's new house before my date with Norah. He, Fred, and I are going to hang out together while we're all three still bachelors."

"Why am I not invited?"

"Are you a bachelor?"

"Bachelorette..."

"Yeah, doesn't count." Ten minutes later, Albus used the Floo to go to James's house. Rose jumped in the shower. She didn't need to wash, but the hot water always seemed to make her feel better and the steam somehow managed to usually clear her thoughts.

Just as she was stepping out of the shower, someone knocked on the door. "Merlin's...saggy..." she grumbled as she hurriedly pulled a towel around herself and skipped to her bedroom.

She heard the front door creak open. "Rose?" a voice called. It was Scorpius.

"Come on in, Scorp!" she called loudly, wondering what he was doing back so soon. "I just got out of the shower, I'll be in there in a minute! Did you forget something?"

"Yes, I just had something I wanted to ask you," his voice was closer. Was he walking down the hallway? Had she not clearly told him that she would be out in a minute?

Footsteps stopped just outside of her bedroom door. "I'm getting dressed," she said clearly, "I'll be out in a minute."

She tied her hair up in a ponytail and opened her closet with the towel still secured around her body. That was when her bedroom door opened. Rose spun around. "Scorpius!" She yelled angrily, her face turning scarlet.

His eyes roamed hungrily over her body in a way that made Rose uneasy. Her robe was hanging on the back of her chair and she reached for it but he caught her by the arm, stopping her. "Let go," she growled, "this isn't funny."

"I'm not trying to be funny," he snarled. Rose looked up into his eyes and frowned. This didn't seem like the Scorpius she had gotten to know. What was wrong with him?

His grip on her arm tightened and she yelped. He shook her, "I need you to tell me something very important. My cousin, Norah Zabini, where does she live?"

"How should I know?"

"I know that you know. Potter is always going over there!" Fuzzy words came back to Rose's memory. Scorpius told her the just a few days ago, '_I'm actually supposed to go over to Norah's new flat this evening...' _

Scorpius knew where Norah lived. He'd been there. Why was he demanding the information from her now? She winced as Scorpius shook her again, harder this time. "Is she in London? Staying with the Potters in Godric's Hollow? Where the fuck is she?"

"I don't know! And even if I did, I wouldn't tell you with the way you're acting! Go to hell, Malfoy!" she spat. Scorpius flung her to the ground hard. She straightened the towel around her body to make sure it stayed in place, covering her nakedness.

"You do know! And you're going to tell me, you little whore!" He kicked her. All of the air in her lungs wooshed out and for one terrifying moment she couldn't breathe. He twisted his fist in her wet hair and dragged her across the bedroom floor.

Her wand was on her bed. If she could just get to it she could curse him into oblivion! Instead of fighting him, she twisted herself toward him and bit his arm with enough force to draw blood. Scorpius swore and released her. "Bitch!"

She lunged for the bed but he caught her around the ankle and yanked her back. He climbed on top of her body, pinning her beneath him with brute strength. His fingers curled around her jaw, forcing her face to look up at his. "Tell me where Norah is."

"Fuck you."

The back of his hand slammed into her face and stars popped up in her line of sight, blocking everything else from her vision. It took a few moments of blinking and panicking before the world stopped spinning and she could see properly again.

"How are you doing this, Zabini?" her words caused him to freeze just as he raised his hand for another blow. "I know this isn't Scorpius. When we were in Diagon Alley, did you get a strand of his hair for Polyjuice Potion or did you put him under the Imperius Curse as we were walking away? Well, which was it?"

"Fuck," he snarled. He slapped her again, though not as hard as before. Then he brought his wand up and gave it a sharp flick. Rose winced, bracing herself for pain, but was surprised to find that he had simply conjured a chain that encompassed her wrist. The other end of the chain was magically attached to the floor.

The chain was such a short length that Rose couldn't stand up or move very far. Scorpius got off of her and walked out of the room. She heard his heavy footfalls wander down the hall. After several moments of listening hard for any sounds that he had left, she felt her heart falter when she heard him walking toward her.

"Found it," he gloated holding up a piece of parchment, "in a letter she wrote to your idiot cousin. '_Dear Albus, I've just moved into my new flat so you can pick me up there tonight at seven o'clock. I live in the little place above Ollivander's wand shop. See you tonight!'_ With one short laugh, and a loud _crack_, he was gone.

Injured, weak, and scared shitless, Rose's mind raced. Somehow, Zabini was either controlling or impersonating Scorpius. He was on his way to Norah's flat. He was there right fucking now. Rose yanked at the chain that bound her hand but knew it wouldn't give.

The floor, of course, wouldn't give either. She pounded uselessly on the wooden floorboards hoping that one was loose but her efforts were in vain. That left only one option then, and she was definitely not anxious to try it.

...

Albus Potter was laughing with Fred at James who was obviously wrapped around Leila's finger. He had told the boys that they had to wait until he finished dusting the house before they could go out. Luckily he was using magic so it shouldn't take very long.

A silvery Patronus came soaring into the room and everyone turned to look at it. Once it stood stationary, they could tell it was in the form of a panther. The panther opened it's mouth and spoke in a voice they all recognized immediately. "Norah in danger. Hurry!"

"Bloody hell," was all Albus had time to say before he had Apparated away.

...

Norah twirled in front of her mirror appraising her appearance. Tonight was another date with Albus. She'd seen him everyday so far and liked him more every time. Tonight they were going dancing. Norah loved dancing almost as much as she loved potions.

There was a knock on the door of her flat. For a moment she cursed the Charm she put on the place; nobody could get into the flat without her express permission. Therefore Albus could never let himself in. At least not until they were married. With a glance at the clock she realized he was several hours early. She smiled; he must be just as anxious to see her as she was to see him.

"Who is it?" she called as she ran, barefoot, across the wooden floors to her sitting room from the bedroom.

"Scorpius," his voice called back.

"Scor?" Norah wrenched the door open to see Scorpius frowning down at her. "What's wrong? Weren't you supposed to have a date with Rose? I thought you would be with her all evening. Maybe even all night," she winked at him and motioned for him to come in.

He stepped over the threshold and said with a sigh, "I'm worried that I might have blown it."

"Oh no! Take a seat on the sofa, I'll get us some tea. You know that I have a date with Al, right? He should be here in maybe twenty-five minutes or so," she disappeared into the kitchen as she spoke.

Scorpius didn't sit on the sofa; instead he walked over to the window and glanced down at Diagon Alley. "Thanks," he took the cup of tea she handed him and sipped at it.

"Now tell me what you did to drive her away. I thought things were going really well with you two. Whatever it is, I'm sure we can fix it. Maybe Albus can put in a good word for you-"

"That idiot?" Scorpius scoffed, "he probably can't even tie his own shoelaces."

"Scor," Norah scolded, "don't talk about him like that! You know that I fancy him. Hell, I'm going to be married to him soon enough! I know you're mad about whatever happened with Rose, but that's no reason to be...to be..." she trailed off.

Scorpius's hair was turning brown. His stature gained an inch. His shoulders were broadening. Realizing what was happening, Norah let out a frightened cry and lunged for the door, but Nathan caught her around the middle and yanked her back.

Norah was punching and kicking every inch of him she could reach, screaming at the top of her lungs all the while. Her wand was in her bedroom. Why had she been such an idiot? She didn't even ask Scorpius to prove that he was himself!

She screamed until he jerked her head back with a firm grip on her hair. "You've been a pain in my arse, little sister. Do you have any idea what the fuck you did when you left? Dad's been drunk for days and keeps taking out his anger at Mum and me. Mum's thinking about moving in with Aunt Astoria. I've been told that if I don't find you and bring you back he's going to fucking kill me. Are you proud of this?"

He pushed her to the ground and her head smacked against the coffee table. A cry escaped her lips before he put his foot between her shoulder blades and started to step on her.

"Norah!" The yell came from the other side of the door.

"Albus!" she cried. But before she could say the words that would allow him entrance into her flat, a Silencing Charm hit her and her voice was gone.

She could hear Albus, so close but yet still so far away, repeating spell after spell trying to get into the flat. An iron grip tightened on her upper arms and she was pulled up to her full, but small, height.

Nathan spun, attempting to Apparate, but it was impossible inside the flat. It was protected with strong enchantments preventing Apparition and Disapparition. He would have to get past Potter if he wanted to leave with Norah.

Or...

He glanced at the window seriously considering it as a viable option. Norah hated flying so he knew there wouldn't be a broomstick in this fucking place, but he should be able to Apparate in mid-air. They were only on the second floor. Would he have time to crash through a window, spin, and Disapparate before hitting the ground?

He wasn't willing to risk it. With obvious frustration, he aimed his wand at the door and said in a deep voice, "_Reducto!"_

The door exploded. Albus, who was standing just on the other side, was blasted back against the wall opposite of the door. Thankfully, he had been somewhat prepared for this and a duel ensued. It was so short, however, that Al didn't even know if it qualified as a proper duel.

One moment his back slammed against the wall and a jet of light shot toward him. The next, he'd blocked the spell, shot one back, and the bloke must have known he was going to lose. Trying to hold onto a struggling witch while dueling a skilled wizard, and attempting to escape made it very difficult indeed.

Nathan made the snap decision that he would simply have to try again another day. He dropped Norah, who was Albus's main concern, and rushed past him. Albus charged over to help the girl who was lying, in obvious pain, on the floor in the hallway.

Albus very gently tucked an arm under her knees and around her back. He lifted her off of the floor. "How did you know?" she asked in a hoarse whisper, Nathan's Silencing Charm had been lifted when he left.

"Rose," said Albus quietly, "she sent me a Patronus."

"How would she know..." Norah frowned.

Albus's eyes widened, "We need to check on her! Are you alright? Should I take you to St. Mungo's first?"

"No," she squirmed out of his arms and stood on her own two feet. "I'm a bit sore but I've definitely suffered worse. We need to check on your cousin." Albus pulled her into his arms and they Apparated directly into his flat.

"Rose!" Al screamed as he ran quickly through the flat, but she wasn't there. The place was empty. Pacing, he rubbed his forehead roughly. "She can't be in any real trouble. If she was able to send a Patronus she obviously has her wand on her."

"But if she was injured then she might have went to the hospital."

Albus was in the fireplace before Norah had even finished her thought. "St. Mungo's!" he said crisply. Norah followed suit. Al was waiting for her when she came spinning out of the green flames into the lobby of the wizard hospital.

"Excuse me, but is Rose Weasley here?" Albus asked the receptionist.

"No," said the witch with a frown.

"She hasn't come in and checked out already? You're sure she hasn't been here at all?" Albus asked as he unconsciously reached to take hold of Norah's hand for comfort and support.

"No," said the witch again, this time with a snap of impatience.

With a grumble, Al turned away from the front desk. Norah said politely, "Thank you for your time," just before Al pulled her back to the fireplace.

...

"Scorpius!" After sending the Patronus to Al, getting dressed, and healing herself, Rose had went straight to Malfoy Manor.

Scorpius came rushing into his bedroom when he heard Rose calling for him. "What's going on?"

"I need your help. I need to find your cousin. AND BLOODY KILL HIM!" she stomped her food hard on the floor.

"What happened?"

"I wasn't sure at first, but now that I know you're here, I'm going to take a wild guess and say that while we were in Diagon Alley, he took a strand of your hair and put it in some Polyjuice Potion. Then he showed up at my flat, hit me around a bit while demanding information, _chained _me to the damn floor, and then went off after Norah once he discovered the location of her new flat in a letter she wrote to Albus-"

"Nathan's going to Norah's? We need to get over there!"

"I already sent Al, he'll take care of her. What we need to do is get Nathan."

"But you said Albus-"

"Albus is just like Uncle Harry. If it comes down to saving Norah or capturing Nathan, he's going to pick saving Norah. Which is, all things considered, a noble quality. However, under these circumstances, I'd be willing to wager that Nathan will escape."

"Rose...if he did that to you, how are you okay? How did you get yourself unchained?"

Rose fidgeted awkwardly and looked up at the ceiling, "He only had it wrapped around my wrist, so I broke my hand. With a broken hand, I was able to slide it out of the chains and get to my wand. I healed it though," she held up her hand and waved it around.

"You...broke your own _hand_?"

"Yes," she said this defensively, afraid that Scorpius disapproved of her actions, "and I would do it again!"

That was the moment that Scorpius Malfoy fell in love with Rose Weasley. The silly, fragile, strong-headed witch had seriously maimed her already injured self to save someone else. How many people would have had that kind of nerve? How many people would have been able to snap their own bones?

His imagination took off and he pictured himself scooping her up right there, throwing her onto his bed, and ravishing her body in the way she deserved. He didn't want to just shag her. He wanted to make love to her.

It hadn't been a slow crush with friendship blossoming into something more like Albus and Norah were having; it wasn't a hidden feeling that had been there all along without him noticing like James and Leila had; it was a sudden explosion of raw new emotions that were crashing into him like waves against the shore during a storm.

"Hullo, Scorpius!" she was snapping her fingers in front of his face, "we need to find that git! Where should we start looking?"

"Hold on," his eyebrows pulled together, "you said he used Polyjuice Potion to imitate me, right? Obviously he wanted you to think it was me doing those things to you. How did you know it wasn't?"

She looked directly into his sky blue eyes and said with firm conviction, "I knew it wasn't you because you would never hurt me."

….

**A/N: First of all, thanks for all of the reviews with tips about posting links on my bio page and your personal preferences with sex scenes. I appreciated it a lot!**

**Second of all, I know some of you are probably like, "What the heck happened? How could he possibly love her already? The last chapter he was saying he didn't even really know her…" but I assure you that Scorpius will be asking himself (and possibly others!) this very question in the next chapter! **

**All of my amazing readers are the ones who keep me updating so quickly; all of the favorites, follows, and reviews! Thanks everyone!**

**Yours,**

**MofDA**


	7. Vulnerable

**A/N: I had a bit of trouble with this chapter. I threw a random James/Leila scene in because we haven't really seen them for a while and I wanted to just make a quick mention of them. Also, there is so much heavy plot I want to get to, but I need to get through a few other things first. **

**I titled this chapter "Vulnerable" because most characters show a vulnerability in this chapter. **

**I spent some time this week making a list of the characters in the story along with their ages and houses. Just the main characters though. Here it is in case you are interested:**

_Teddy - 26 - Hufflepuff_

_Victoire - 24 - Ravenclaw_

_Molly - 21 - Ravenclaw_

_Roxanne - 21 - Gryffindor_

_Louis - 20 - Slytherin_

_Fred - 19 - Gryffindor_

_Dominique - 19 - Gryffindor _

_James - 19 - Gryffindor_

_Leila - 18 - Gryffindor _

_Lucy - 18 - Hufflepuff_

_Scorpius - 18 - Slytherin_

_Norah - 18 - Hufflepuff _

_Albus - 17 - Gryffindor_

_Rose - 17 - Gryffindor_

_Hugo - 15 - Ravenclaw_

_Lily - 15 - Gryffindor_

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Language, scenes of a sexual nature, and mentions of violence in this chapter.**

…

As it turned out, finding Nathan was easier than Rose had anticipated. First they went to Norah's flat. When they found the mess there, it only seemed to confirm Rose's prediction that Albus had saved Norah but let Nathan escape.

"Okay, so let's think," she said as they walked down Diagon Alley. "Where would you go if you attempted kidnap, failed, and knew the authorities would be after you soon?"

"Not home, that's for sure. Maybe to a bar. You know, one last drink before I was chucked into Azkaban?"

"The Hogshead?"

They both looked at each other and he gave her a sharp nod. With linked hands, he Apparated them to Hogsmeade. A lot of shady characters hung out in that bar. It would be the perfect place for a wanted criminal to blend in.

"Stay behind me," said Scorpius sharply. Rose glared at him but obliged.

He pushed open the door to the bar and it was a bit more crowded than usual. They spotted Nathan immediately. He was sitting at the bar, taking shots of firewhiskey. "Another!" He growled just before another popped up magically in front of him.

"Zabini!" Rose jumped out from behind Scorpius and lunged at the tipsy wizard. Before she could reach him, Scorpius had lifted her off of her feet and pulled her back.

Nathan watched the two of them lazily for a moment, downed the last bit of alcohol in his hand and said, "I reckon you're here to take me to Azkaban?"

"Unfortunately I'm not a qualified Auror yet, so I can't. But I know someone who can," Scorpius flicked his wand and a silvery Patronus shot out of sight before Rose could decipher it's form.

"Aren't you going to run?" Rose snarled, still fighting Scorpius, flinging her fists, wanting so damn badly to pummel Nathan.

"What's the point? I attacked Harry Potter's niece and soon-to-be daughter-in-law. I'm sure he'd want to catch me just as much as any Death Eater."

Rose was shocked to find such a volatile man to be such a calm drunk. "Well...yeah," she said intelligently.

"What's going on here?" Harry Potter entered the bar and his eyes locked on Scorpius.

"Sorry to bother you, Mr. Potter," said Scorpius as he released Rose and shook Harry's hand, "but this is important. Have you seen Albus?"

"He just arrived at the house when I got your Patronus. What's going on?"

"Nathan Zabini attacked me at my flat! He was impersonating Scorpius with Polyjuice Potion!"

"Why?"

"I was looking for my sister," Nathan stood up, wobbled a bit, then held out his hands, obviously expecting to be put into shackles. "She left home a few days ago. I was going to drag her arse back home. I just...lost it. My dad's been a nightmare since she left and I wanted her to be the one to suffer for what she'd done instead of my mum and I suffering for it."

Even if he didn't make total sense, everyone seemed to be able to piece things together quickly. "Then what happened?" Harry asked.

"I left Rose chained to the floor of her bedroom, found a letter in Albus's room telling me where Norah lived now, and I went over there. I fought with her. Hit her. Tried to take her home, but Albus showed up. I couldn't Disapparate directly out of her flat, so I shoved her to the floor, knowing Albus would pay more attention to her than me and I took off. Suddenly these two show up and called for you."

"Is that what happened?" Harry looked to Scorpius and Rose to confirm the story.

"Yes, as far as I know," Rose confirmed.

Her uncle sighed, ran a hand through his hair, and said, "Procedure dictates that I detain you until you can have a trial. Come on, Mr. Zabini," Harry put a hand on his shoulder. "Rose, Scorpius, I will notify you two when the trial is so you can give your testimonies."

Harry Potter escorted a stumbling Nathan out of the bar without any difficulty. "That was rather anticlimactic," she grumbled.

Scorpius laughed, "What should we do now?"

"We should go to the Potter's house, let Albus know that I'm okay, then have our date."

"You still want to watch a movie tonight after everything that has happened?"

"Yes, I do," she smiled up at him and his heart constricted at the sight.

...

"Couldn't you have left a note at least? Merlin, Rose! I was panicked when I went home and you weren't there! We went to St. Mungo's because we thought you must have been really badly injured!"

"I'm sorry, Al," Rose pleaded with her favourite cousin.

"Don't be so hard on her," Norah encouraged him, "she managed to get Nathan caught, didn't she?"

"Okay, you're forgiven, I guess," Albus relented.

Rose hugged him tightly in relief but it didn't go unnoticed by her that Albus hadn't forgiven her until he had been prompted by Norah. "Are any of you hungry? Dinner's almost done," said Ginny as she peeked her head into the sitting room.

"No, thanks anyway, Aunt Ginny, but I think we're going to get going. Scorpius and I have a date," Rose said brightly.

Scorpius was pleased at the way she spoke of them together. It gave him a strange feeling of pride and happiness to hear her say things like 'we' and 'Scorpius and I.'

"Another movie?" Al inquired.

"Yes," said Rose.

"Oh! A muggle movie? That's so fascinating! I've never seen one before. Are they wonderful?" Norah squealed in excitement.

Scorpius and Rose exchanged an identical look, almost as if in that moment they read each other's minds. "Would you and Albus like to join us?" it was Rose who voiced the invitation.

"Can we?" she asked Albus with a radiant smile.

He put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her close to him. "Of course we can." he kissed the top of her head.

...

And so it was their first double-date. Rose was glad for the opportunity to get to see her cousin interact with his fiance and wasn't disappointed. They acted like a real couple. Albus sat on one end of the coach, with Norah curled up in his lap as the film played.

Scorpius sat on the other end, with Rose beside him. Just like before, he had his arm around her and she leaned into his shoulder. Again it took a bit of effort on her part, but not quite as much as before. She wondered if this looked awkward to an outsider.

If Al or Norah glanced over, would things between Scorpius and Rose look natural or forced? Deep down in her heart, Rose knew she wouldn't like either possible answer.

After the movie ended, Scorpius politely said goodnight and left, after kissing Rose swiftly on the cheek. Albus escorted Norah back to her flat, after Norah had profusely thanked Rose for inviting them and expressing repeatedly what a wonderful time she'd had.

Albus fixed the door and helped her pick up the mess in her sitting room; spilled tea and broken tea cups. "I hope you sleep well," he said politely as he got ready to leave.

"Al?" her voice was small and meek. He smiled softly at her. She was so adorable it broke his heart. "Would you stay with me tonight? I know it's silly, Nathan's in Azkaban and I'm perfectly safe, but I just...want you with me. You make me feel safe."

He was so surprised by her request that it took him a minute to decide what to say. "Yes, anything you want." And he meant it. Anything she asked of him, anything she wanted, he would do it.

Silently, she took his hand and they went to her bedroom. "I'm afraid I don't have any pajamas that will fit you..." she said.

Without thinking, Al said, "I normally sleep in my boxers anyway."

"That would be fine," she said without even a trace of reluctance. As she disappeared down the hall with her pajamas in hand, Al began to strip. He both liked and disliked the fact that she was so comfortable with the idea of him being in bed with her in his pants.

That could only really mean one thing. Norah Zabini was, most probably, not a virgin. At that thought, Albus felt an emotion that he could only describe as sad. His mind began to wander. Who would she have been with before? He attempted to pull up any memory he had of her from Hogwarts, but mostly the only other people in the memories were Lucy, her boyfriend Lysander, and Lysander's twin brother Lorcan.

Norah returned then and smiled at Albus casually as he stood before her in nothing but his boxers. She wore a light tank top and pajama bottoms. They crawled into the bed silently and snuggled together. "Did you lock the door?" asked Al.

"Yes, although there really isn't any need. Nobody can get in without my express permission anyway."

"Good point," he yawned.

Norah rolled over to face him. Al gave her a small smile, suddenly not caring if he was the first bloke she was with or not. It didn't matter to him. What mattered was that she was safe and here in his arms.

He kissed her sweetly, gently. and she responded with a soft gasp before kissing him back. Things heated up quickly. One moment it was an innocent snog and the next she was raking her nails down his back, writhing beneath him, as he had his hands under her shirt.

Timidly, his hands grazed the undersides of her breasts and she pressed her chest up in encouragement. When she felt his thumb trail over her nipple, she pulled her face away from his, "Albus," she panted, "I don't mind this...snogging and touching, but I'm not ready for...anything else."

When he heard her words, the first thought that entered his mind was, _'No problem. I don't know if I'm ready yet either.' _but then the second thought that followed the first immediately was, '_What the hell? She's shagged other blokes but isn't ready to shag me?' _He reprimanded himself for that thought.

He continued kissing her and she continued to respond enthusiastically. Norah was having a hard time resisting. It was obvious that Albus wanted her and that thought alone made her mind unfocused and clouded by lust. His erection was pressed against her inner thigh and she would be lying if she said she wasn't writhing in an attempt to get that hardened length pressed up against a more intimate part of herself.

But they'd only really known each other for what? A week now, maybe? Something in her wasn't comfortable with the idea. Especially after the day she had had. She didn't want her first time with Albus associated with the aftermath of an attack by Nathan.

She whined when she felt his hands leave her breasts and slide back down her stomach, but stopped instantly when he asked softly, "May I?" and tugged at the hem of her shirt. Norah nodded.

Albus wrapped an arm around her back and lifted her upper body off of the bed so he was able to pull her shirt up and over her head, flinging it aside. He groaned as he saw her naked breasts for the first time. Then he bent his head down to kiss them.

That was it. Every ounce of Norah's self control was shattered the moment his tongue circled her nipple. With a moan, she pulled his body harder against hers, ran her hands through his hair, and squirmed under him in an attempt to get out of her pajama bottoms.

It took her a few moments before she realized that Albus had stopped moving. He had her hands pinned above her head as he hoovered over her breathing heavily. "You said..."

"I know what I said," she rasped, "but I changed my mind."

Al closed his eyes and shook his head, "We're not ready for this yet, even if we want it."

They stayed in that position, still, as they both fought to control their breathing. Once she'd calmed down, she knew there was wisdom in his words. "You're right," she consented.

"Ready for sleep?"

She chuckled, "Not really, but I am exhausted."

Albus rolled onto his side and opened his arms, allowing her to cuddle into his chest. Together, they fell asleep.

...

Rose Weasley woke up screaming. There was something small and furry on her chest nuzzling her neck. Scrambling, she disentangled herself from her bedding and flung the critter to the floor.

With a mixture of fury and relief she yelled, "ALBUS SEVERUS POTTER! YOU PROMISED ME WHEN WE MOVED INTO THIS DAMNED PLACE THAT YOU WOULD KEEP YOUR PETS UNDER CONTROL! YOUR STUPID ARSE NIFFLER ALMOST ATE MY FACE OFF TRYING TO GET MY NECKLACE!"

She stormed down the hall and flung his bedroom door open. The only problem was that Albus wasn't there. What was there, however, was a small pile of her shiniest pieces of jewelry on the floor. Even as she stared at it, Ned the Niffler scuttled past her with another hair clip, dropping it on the top of the pile, then started back toward her room.

"Oh no you don't, you worthless thing!" Rose scooped him up, deposited him into his cage, and went to the kitchen. It was amusing to her that Albus hadn't come home the night before, but she was too angry to be amused at that moment.

"Was that your lovely voice we heard all the way down in the lobby?"

Rose let out a yelp and spun around to see the two people she had been missing so very much recently. "Hugo! Louis!"

Louis Weasley was her next closest friend. In her own secret list, her best friends went in this particular order: Albus, James, Fred, then Louis. Louis, however, had been two years ahead of Rose in school.

After he graduated, Louis travelled abroad for a year before deciding to join the Ministry as an Unspeakable. Too much of his time, in Rose's opinion, was spent traveling for work. Hugo had been in Italy for the past two weeks with Louis.

They rushed her. Squealing with laughter, Rose was knocked over by the force of their hugs. There had been a time when Louis and Albus were tied for first place on her 'best mate' list, but that had changed when Louis left Hogwarts. When he could no longer share most of his life with her because, as an Unspeakable, he couldn't discuss work.

Everyone knew that was probably why he and Verity got on so well; they were both Unspeakables and could talk to each other about everything. "How was Italy?" she asked as she ruffled Hugo's mop of orange hair.

"Excellent! You would have loved it. The architecture was beautiful, the girls were so hot, and the food..._magnifico_!" he kissed his fingers and blew a kiss into the air in a good imitation of a chef.

"What are you two tossers doing here anyway?"

"We came to comfort you," Hugo told her gravely, "we just heard the news about your recent, er, engagement."

Rose snorted, "It's not as bad as you would think."

"'course not," said Louis, "I know Scorpius. He's a good bloke for you, Rosie."

"Oh please, Lou. How do you know Scorpius?"

"I was Head Boy when you two became Prefects, remember? We were both Slytherins. I was his Quidditch Captain, too."

"Blimey, I forgot. It's been a few years since you were at Hogwarts."

"I miss it every day," his voice was wistful, "why don't you have breakfast ready for us?"

"Maybe because I just woke up about two seconds before you two decided to Apparate yourselves directly into my kitchen. Speaking of, Hugo, I hope that Louis brought you via Side-Along Apparition and you weren't doing any underage magic?" she eyed her brother suspiciously.

"Underage magic?" he feigned innocence, "I would never."

The kitchen filled with their laughter. "You're an idiot. Come on, take a seat and I'll whip something up."

"Where's Al?" Louis was looking around curiously as he walked over to a kitchen chair and dropped down into it.

"Let me put it this way. He escorted Norah home last night...and wasn't in his bed when I went to wake him up this morning."

The boys grinned at each other knowingly while Rose threw them a disgusted look. "Ah, I heard you two were here," Fred Weasley joined them in the kitchen.

"Bloody hell! Don't any of you prats _walk _anymore? Or even announce your presence before you just barge in? What if I was running around the flat naked?"

"Why would you be naked?" inquired Fred as he rummaged through the fridge.

"Maybe Scorpius would be here," said Hugo with barely restrained laughter.

Ignoring that statement, Rose said in a dignified way, "Maybe I just got out of the shower or something."

Likewise, the boys ignored her comment, "I don't think Scorpius could get into her knickers that quickly. It will take him another solid month at least."

"I don't know about that. Usually it's the quiet ones who are the wildest."

"Since when has Rose ever been 'quiet'?"

"I mean quiet on the dating front. She hasn't been with many blokes, so who knows how fast she actually moves in a relationship?"

"Does being forced into a marriage count as an actual relationship?"

"Oi! Shut up all of you or Merlin help me, I won't make breakfast for any of you tossers!" Silence rang through the small space almost as loudly as the boys' voices had been a moment before.

"We're sorry," said Fred repentantly, "and we would be much obliged if you would please grace us with your fabulous cooking."

"That's better," she turned toward the stove, unaware of the snickers and looks the boys were shooting behind her back.

Just as she was tipping the last of the sausages onto a plate, two more people ambled into the tiny kitchen; James Potter and Leila Scamander. Seeing their hands linked and knowing they'd probably just been in bed together was only slightly awkward for those who were already in Rose's flat.

"Merlin's bouncing balls, why don't we just take this nice little reunion to Gran's?" Rose suggested, sounding a bit put-out.

"Nah, there's no adult supervision here," said James as he snatched a hot sausage from the plate and practically swallowed it whole.

"Do I not count as adult supervision?" Louis teased.

"No," Leila told him with a laugh, "definitely not."

"For Godric's sake! Are all of my relatives complete imbeciles?" Rose said in a way that was very similar to her mother.

"No, Aunt Hermione," everyone said at the same time before bursting into raucous laughter. It took Rose less than a second to join in.

...

Scorpius barely got any sleep the previous night. Liam had Flooed into the bedroom only to leave again when he found his best mate to be unresponsive to anything he said. He'd returned a while later with Albus, Norah, and Adara.

"Told you," said Liam as he motioned to where Scorpius lay on his bed, gazing up at the canopy without really seeing it. "Do you think he's been poisoned or cursed?"

"If he has been, I can think of one way to snap him out of it," Adara smiled wickedly. "When Liam and I went to Norah's flat to drag her over here, we found Potter in bed with her."

Scorpius shot straight up, "What?" he screeched.

"Don't be a prat," said Norah, "he is my fiance after all. Not to mention, we didn't shag."

"Aw, and I was so looking forward to hearing all of the riveting details of what sex is like with the famous Albus Potter," Adara pouted.

"Alright now, mate," said Liam in an attempt to change the subject, "tell us what has you in this state."

"Nothing," Scorpius shrugged, "I was just tired. Didn't get much sleep last night," he gave a very fake yawn, "now, if you'll all please be kind enough to leave the way you came, I'd love to get back to my nap."

"But...your eyes weren't closed," Adara noted.

"Bloody hell! Can't everyone sleep with their eyes open? I thought that was a rather common occurrence."

"Being snippy with us is only confirming the fact that something is wrong with you. I mean more wrong than the obvious, of course," Norah teased.

"Liam," Scorpius whined, "you're my best mate. Please get them all out of here. But you can stay."

Liam nodded, swept his arm toward the fireplace, and said to Norah, "My lady?"

"If you don't mind, I'd like to stay and talk to Scorpius for a moment," said Al curtly.

"Alright, ladies, get out of here. Liam, wait for me here. Come on, Al, we'll go down the hall."

As soon as they were safely out of ear shot of Scorpius's bedroom, Albus blurted out the question that had been burning in him all night. "Has Norah ever had sex before?"

Scorpius raised his eyebrows. That was definitely not what he had expected Albus to talk with him about. "Yes," he answered carefully, "why do you ask?"

"I guess I was just...too much of a coward to ask her. I didn't want to make her feel guilty, because it honestly doesn't matter to me, it just makes me feel like I...missed out or something, you know?"

No. Truthfully, Scorpius didn't know. The witch he loved was a virgin. The other birds he'd been with didn't matter to him. But if they had, how would he have felt? Like Albus, it wouldn't have been the most important thing in the world to him, but yes, he would have wished that he would have been able to have that honour.

"I suppose."

"I figured she had. I guess what was really bothering me is that I wanted to know who she'd been with."

Scorpius gave a chuckle, "Wanting to see what sort of competition you'll have in the bedroom?"

"Hardly," Al exuded confidence.

"Don't worry, Potter, Norah's only ever been with two blokes as far as I know, and I'm pretty sure she tells me everything."

"Who?" Albus pressed.

"When your cousin Lucy started dating Lysander-"

"No," Albus griped, "don't tell me he cheated on her with Norah!"

"Shut up, you git. No, he didn't cheat on Lucy. But when they started dating, they all thought it would be cute if Norah and Lorcan tried dating, too. So they dated for a few months in fourth year. He was the first guy she was with."

Lorcan Scamander? Albus could handle that. He knew Lorcan very well. All things considered, that wasn't as bad as he was thinking it would be. He'd been picturing horrors like Zachary Nott or Travis Goyle. "And the second?"

"Longbottom," said Scorpius with a grimace.

Al's face fell and then contorted into one of rage, "Vincent Longbottom has been dating _my little sister_ for almost three years. Are you telling me that he cheated on her with Norah?"

"What's with your paranoia with cheating? No, nobody cheated on anybody as far as I know. Keep your hair on. I'm not talking about Vincent. I meant the other Longbottom," explained Scorpius. Albus almost wished he had meant Vincent. The 'other' Longbottom was Vincent's older brother, Austin.

Austin Longbottom had been a Gryffindor two years ahead of Albus and Vincent. All of the girls at Hogwarts wanted to get with him and most of them did. He inherited none of his father's awkward clumsiness. None of his mother's gullibleness. Instead he'd inherited the best from both sides of his family.

In summation, he was the epitome of the stereotypical image of a Gryffindor. A star on the Quidditch team, built like a bloody Greek god, intelligent, with devilish good looks. A charming sense of humor, bravery, sincerity, and above all, he truly respected each woman he was ever with. No matter how many they were in number. Most were of the opinion that he was _perfect._

Albus's teeth started to grind together. "Easy, mate," Scorpius put a firm hand on his shoulder, "that was a long time ago, back in fifth year. And don't worry, she hasn't been with a bloke since."

"Be honest with me, Scorpius. Do you really think I can compare to someone like Austin Longbottom? I don't just mean shagging, I mean everything."

"Norah fancies you," said Scorpius as if this concluded the matter.

"So?"

"So, Norah never fancied him. If anything it was a rebound sort of fling. They hooked up at a party where Norah saw Lorcan all over some Hufflepuff slag. If you must know, _he _was the one who chased after _her_ after that night. _She_ was the one who broke _his_ heart because she never fancied him. She really likes you, Al. To her, you're worth more than a hundred of him."

Albus mulled this over, "I reckon if you're sure Norah prefers me..."

"I'm sure."

Albus smiled, feeling like a weight was lifted off of his shoulders. The terrible worries that had been on his mind were gone. Happily, they returned to Scorpius's bedroom where Albus said with a cocky grin, "I'm off to spend the day with Norah," and Flooed away.

"Now," said Liam who was the only person remaining, "are you going to tell me what-"

"I-think-that-I'm-in-love-with-Rose-or-actually-I-know-I-am-in-love-with-her-and-that-scares-the-shite-out-of-me-because-I-know-she-doesn't-feel-the-same-way-and-I-don't-even-know-how-it-happened-it-just-did," Scorpius said all of this very fast while wringing his hands.

"You do realize, mate, that you just sounded uncannily like Adara and Norah when they're squealing and gossiping about girl things, right?"

"I'm aware," this time his voice was deeper.

"Secondly, it's a good thing that you love her. It will make your marriage a hell of a lot less complicated. The hard part will be getting her to even fancy you, let alone love you."

"I think she's starting to like me. We've been seeing a lot of each other and she says things sometimes in a casual way that reveal so much more than she means to."

"Are you sure you're in love with her?"

"I don't think I've ever been more sure of anything."

"Does that mean you've figured her out?"

"I'm starting to. The first time that I finally saw straight through her damn facade, and saw the heart of who she was, that's when I fell in love with her. At her core, she's...she's the bravest, strongest, most intelligent, loving, person I've ever known," he was frowning as he said this, "Suddenly I don't know if I'm a good enough person to be with her."

"What?" Liam's eyes bulged, "there's not a wizard better suited to that crazy witch than you, Scorpius. You have this way of being able to see who people really are, and that's what Rose needs. Like when you first met Zach, Travis, and Rider. You took one look at them, shook your head, and sat next to me at the Slytherin table."

Scorpius smiled at that memory, "It was obvious they were bad news."

"Obvious to you. Not to anyone else. Rose will love you back as soon as she gets to know you the way you've come to know her."

"I've never felt this way before. I've never...loved. Not like this. It's more than just wanting to shag her or wanting to make her smile, it's..."

"It's wanting to keep her safe and happy. It's wanting to be the one person in the world she runs to first and trusts the most. It's needing to know that she needs you, too. It's...the most exhilarating yet scariest feeling in the whole world."

"Yeah! How do you...?"

"Adara," Liam looked positively miserable.

"Oh," Scorpius didn't know what else to say. "Who is she...?"

"Patrick Yaxley."

"Her ex-boyfriend?"

"That's the one."

"He was probably her second choice. He's a decent enough wizard. The only reason she left him in sixth year is because she started falling for you."

"I didn't know that. I thought it was just because she didn't like him anymore," Liam averted his eyes, gazing out the window instead of at Scorpius.

"I'm really sorry, mate," Scorpius said sincerely. It was an almost painful experience for him to watch his best friend suffer so much.

"Nothing we can do about it now," Liam lifted his head and sighed deeply. "You'll be my best man?"

"Absolutely. When's the date?"

"August 27th."

"Same date as Dominique and Nathan if he's not in Azkaban. Good. I'd rather come to your wedding."

"But that will be your wife's cousin..."

"I'll talk with Rose about it, but there probably won't be a wedding that day anyway. I asked my dad and he said that according to the law, for the crimes he's being charged with, Nathan will be required to serve anywhere from two to six months in Azkaban."

"That's all? I thought it would be a few years at least."

"Well he didn't seriously hurt Rose or Norah," Scorpius said in an exasperated way, clearly he wasn't happy with that news either, "nor did he threaten either of their lives. The most serious crime he committed was impersonating me to gain their trust. Uses of Polyjuice Potion are limited to things that are legal."

"Let's hope for six months then," said Liam in a positive way. Scorpius grinned. It filled him with an odd sense of respect to see that despite his miserable circumstances, Liam was ever the optimist.

...

"I'm beginning to think this was a terrible idea."

"But he's so happy."

"I don't care. Look at those idiots!"

"Aw, Gin, they're just having fun."

"They're playing _leap-frog_, Harry. In the front yard. Next door to our house. All of the neighbors can see! They look like toddlers for Godric's sake!"

Harry and Ginny stood looking out the picture window of their home as James knelt down to the ground and Leila jumped over his back with a wild war cry. Harry chuckled, "Those two will probably always be toddlers."

Even as they watched, James disappeared to the backyard then reappeared dragging a hose with a sprinkler attached to it. Gleefully, he turned it on. In their shorts and t-shirts, James and Leila started running through the sprinklers. Ginny looked at Harry with an _I told you so_ look.

"Well, it is rather hot outside today," Harry defended.

Ginny chuckled affectionately and wrapped her arms around his middle, "You're so cute when you try to stick up for all of his idiotic ideas."

"You're rather indulgent yourself, darling."

Outside, James and Leila were now chasing each other, both of them sopping wet. "This was the best idea ever!" yelled James as he lost his footing and slipped in a pile of mud.

Leila stuck her tongue out at him, "That's because it was my idea!"

"Where's my wand? I don't think blue is a good colour for you. Let me turn that t-shirt white."

"James Sirius Potter!"

"What?" he asked innocently, knowing very well what a white t-shirt would mean.

"How dare you suggest such a thing!"

"It's not like I haven't seen them before," he gave her a sexy wink.

Leila smirked, "I wasn't talking about the t-shirt, love, I was talking about performing magic out in the open with all of the muggles around!"

"Oh, right, that..." he shrugged, "I've done worse."

With a shriek, Leila found herself tackled into a giant mud puddle.

...

Rose and Louis. Louis and Rose. It used to be that way all the time. Louis used to be just as close to Rose as Albus. Now she felt a bittersweet emotion as the two of them sat on her sofa, everyone else had left, and just talked.

"You look good, Rosie," he complimented.

"Thanks, Lou. How are you doing, really?" He looked tired she noticed.

"Alright, I guess. Things are busy down at the Ministry, but I don't want to talk about work. I want to talk about you."

"Me?" she asked with wide eyes.

Louis's eyes were the same as Rose's. The Weasley eyes as her mother called them. Although only Rose, Louis, and Molly had inherited them. Louis was the person she ran to when the Sorting Hat almost put her in Slytherin. He was the one she went to when the first bloke she'd ever kissed tried pressuring her into going further. He was the one she confided so much in and loved so much. Now he almost felt like a stranger.

"Yes, you. Rose, I know we haven't been close in a few years, but I still know you almost better than I know myself. I worry that you're not going to give Scorpius a fair chance. I don't want to see you make both of your lives miserable."

"Louis..." she growled in warning.

"Cut the crap, Rose. You might be able to fool James and Fred with that tough little attitude, but we both know you're not fooling me, or Al, or yourself. You can act all pissed off, you can throw a tantrum, you can do whatever the hell you want, but underneath that, we know what's really going on here."

"I don't know what the hell you're talking about," her eyes flashed.

"Don't make me say it," Louis frowned and his brow creased.

Again, she repeated, "I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

"Ethan Bones."

Rose flinched as if he'd slapped her. She couldn't believe he had the balls to say that name in front of her. Ethan Bones. The first boy she'd ever kissed. The first relationship she'd ever had.

"He has nothing to do with anything," she rasped.

"I know he's not the main reason behind this, but he's definitely a factor. It's okay, Rose. It's me. Louis. We've been through everything together, haven't we? The best and the worst? You really liked the bloke. He wanted to have sex and you weren't ready. First chance he got he left you for a slag who would give him the only thing he wanted. Now you're scared silly of physical intimacy."

"I'm afraid of physical intimacy because I've never experienced it before," she bristled.

"I'm sure that has something to do with it. But let's get to the heart of the issue, yeah?"

Right at that moment Albus Apparated into the flat. "What are we talking about?"

"Rose," said Louis with a significant look, "and her reasons for being like...this."

"Oh," Albus's face fell. Gingerly, he sat on the sofa on the other side of Rose.

"Louis thinks it's because of Ethan," Rose bit out the name with anger.

"Partly," Albus agreed, "but mostly it's because of yourself. Ethan, Hugo, your parents, Wendy, Helen, Becca, and Melanie all had something to do with it as well."

Rose groaned, "What the bloody hell is this? An intervention?"

"Of sorts," said Louis.

"You have issues, Rose, and you need to figure them out before you can have a healthy relationship with Malfoy."

"I don't want to talk about this."

Two hours later Rose was exhausted. She'd hashed through every mental block she'd been having. Now she was crying while Louis held her and Albus patted her back. "It's a good thing that we talked about all of this," said Albus.

"It is," agreed Lou, "maybe now things can move forward with Scorpius."

"I'm sorry," she said while wiping away the last of her tears, "that you two had to sit through all of my rambling."

"We don't mind one bit," Louis assured her.

"We're just glad you're doing better now. I should have talked with you about this two years ago," said Albus.

"I shouldn't have left right when you needed me the most," Louis said guiltily.

"Don't blame yourselves, you dolts. Can we please get out of here now? I could really use something to cheer me up," she grumbled.

As if on cue, the fireplace lit up green and Scorpius Malfoy appeared. His eyes went directly to Rose without even noticing Louis or Albus at first. "What's wrong?" there was such concern in his voice that it momentarily shocked Al and Lou.

He went to her and knelt down beside the sofa, "Are you okay?" he pressed, "are you hurt?"

"Calm down, Scorpius," Rose gave him a small smile, "I'm fine, I just didn't realize how much I missed this git," she elbowed Louis affectionately and he gave an exaggerated 'oof!'

"You're sure? There isn't anything I can do?"

"Thanks for caring so much, but I'm really okay. But I probably look a mess."

"You look beautiful," he said.

Rose filled with curiosity. What was with this sudden change in him? He'd always been nice and caring but this was different. He took it to a new level that she wasn't prepared for. Why did he sound like a doting boyfriend instead of a forced boyfriend?

"Is there a particular reason why you're here?" she asked politely. Despite the talk she'd had with Albus and Louis, she was still reluctant to let anyone else get too close to her.

"Yes, I was going to ask if you wanted to come to my place? I have a surprise for you."

"A surprise?" When her eyes lit up Scorpius knew that he had said just the right thing and that Rose Weasley must love surprises. "I'll see you two later! Thanks so much for everything!" She jumped to her feet, wiped one last time at her red-blotched cheeks and let Scorpius Apparate her to his home.

What Scorpius was unprepared for, however, was his parents waiting anxiously for him. "Thank Merlin you're back," said Astoria as she rushed up to them, "we knew you would Apparate here," they were in the south sitting room.

"What's wrong?" Scorpius instinctively wrapped an arm around Rose and pulled her slightly behind him.

"Your grandparents are here," said Draco gravely, "and they want to meet your new fiance."

"No," he pushed Rose behind his own slim frame as if he could hide her from sight, "Absolutely not. I don't want them to meet her, I don't want to see them at the wedding, I don't want them to send a gift, _nothing_."

"Now Scorpius," a voice drawled from the hallway, "is that anyway to speak of two people who love you very much?"

Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy entered the room regally. If Rose thought Draco and Astoria always looked sophisticated and elegant, they were nothing compared to this. They had both aged gracefully. their blonde hair faded to white but they still managed to look so young.

"Is this the half-blood then?" Lucius spoke of Rose as if she were not in the room.

"Hullo, Mr. Malfoy," said Rose in an attempt of polite conversation.

For a moment he looked surprised at being addressed by her. "Ah," he said with a smirk, but he still addressed Scorpius and not Rose when he spoke, "I see the Ministry has seen fit to give you a Weasley. Merlin, they breed like rabbits. There are so many of them."

Rose blinked at him in shock. Quite honestly, she didn't know how to respond to this. On one hand, these were Scorpius's grandparents. On another, they had just entirely disrespected her entire family.

"I see the Ministry has seen fit to not chuck your sorry arse into Azkaban," Scorpius made the decision for her, it seemed, as the words were spilling from his mouth, "at least they did one thing right in pairing Rose with me."

Narcissa gasped and Lucius was looking murderous. "Hullo," Narcissa Malfoy addressed Rose like she was speaking to a small child, "I am Scorpius's grandmother."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Malfoy," said Rose uncertainly.

"Such a shame," said Narcissa sadly, "Scorpius had so much potential. Now he's stuck with a dirty little muggle like you."

"ENOUGH!" bellowed Scorpius. It seemed that Draco was still unable to stand up to his parents as Scorpius was the one to take control of a situation that was quickly spiraling out of hand, "If either of you say another word against my fiance, I will use force to remove you from these premises. Malfoy Manor no longer belongs to you. I bet it burns your butterbeer to know that in a few short weeks Rose Weasley will have more claim to this place than you."

Lucius scowled, "Surely you didn't want _this_?" he motioned to Rose.

"OUT!" Scorpius shouted as he pulled his wand from his robes.

"Is this anyway to treat your grandparents?" Narcissa asked haughtily.

"Is this anyway to treat the witch who I love?"

Everything seemed to freeze. Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. Nobody even breathed. The first person to react was Astoria. A broad smile stretched across her face and her hands clasped together in joy.

Lucius was the second to react. He took hold of his wife's hand and said, "If this is the type of grandson my son has raised, we're leaving." Without another word, he tugged his wife out of the Manor.

"Perhaps we should...leave them alone for a few minutes, love?" Draco said as he put a hand on Astoria's arm.

"What? Oh, yes!" she beamed at the pair of them and retreated with her husband.

"Scorpius," said Rose, "did you really mean that? Or were you just saying it to get rid of your grandparents?"

With a tortured gaze he turned to face her and said, "I meant it. Very, very much. I don't know how or why, but I am in love with you, Rose."


	8. Rose's Choice

**A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter than usual and I apologize for that, but I thought I should leave it right where I did. Next chapter is one I'm actually kind of excited about. **

**In this chapter, Rose's thoughts and emotions sound kind of confused or contradicting because they are. She is trying to figure a lot of things out and I wanted to illustrate the confusion she is experiencing.**

**Thanks SOOO much for all of the reviews. I really do read them all and take them all to heart. At some point I would like to give individual responses to reviewers in an author's note but I'm anxious to publish this chapter so perhaps another time! **

**On my bio page I posted links to images of what I imagine Leila's wedding dress and bridesmaid dresses to look like.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Language and alcohol abuse in this chapter.**

…**.**

Rose Weasley felt like she couldn't breathe. There simply wasn't enough air in the room anymore. She couldn't even process her own thoughts. Questions flew threw her mind but she couldn't find her voice to ask them out loud; _how could you possibly feel that way so soon? What happened to cause it? How long have you felt that way? _and more importantly, _Are you sure?_

"I know," Scorpius continued, "this seems like it's coming out of nowhere. I didn't mean for it to come out like this. I was just so bloody angry at Lucius and Narcissa that it slipped out. I don't expect you to say it back or to feel the same way."

"Can we just...act like you didn't say it?" Rose asked in a small voice.

"Pretend like I don't love you, you mean?" He sounded incredulous.

"Don't say it. Please," her eyes begged him to take the words back.

"I don't understand. I thought you would be happy about this? I know you don't feel the same way, but isn't it a good thing that the bloke you're going to marry loves you?"

Childishly she clapped her hands over her ears and shook her head back and forth. "I'm not ready to hear it," she said quietly.

"Then I won't say it again. But I'm not going to recant it, either."

They stared each other down for several heart beats before Rose released a large breath of air and said, "Fine. Now, didn't you say you had a surprise for me?"

He smiled but they both knew it was forced. "I'm afraid I might have ruined everything."

"No, you didn't. It's not your fault, Scorpius, it's just...me," she shrugged.

"Right," he said loudly, in an attempt to sound joyful, "your surprise. If you'll take my hand, m'lady?"

Rose relaxed instantly. Joking Scorpius she liked. Serious Scorpius made her uncomfortable. With relief she took hold of his offered hand and he led her out of the room. The winding halls and twisting corridors had her confused as to where they were heading. Not to mention all of the blasted staircases.

"My room," he gestured to the room they were walking past, as if he knew she was utterly lost in his mansion of a home. "Here is your surprise." He stopped in front of a pair of large oak french doors which were closed.

He turned her body so she was facing the doors, grinned at her in a way that made his eyes sparkle, and threw the doors open. For a moment she wasn't sure what type of room she was entering, but when her eyes focused on the center piece; the most beautiful grand piano she'd ever seen, she knew.

It was a sort of music room. There were instruments all over, artwork adorning the walls, vases overflowing with gorgeous blossoms, in one corner was a window seat with a large arched window overlooking the fountain in the garden behind the manor. Surrounding the window were bookshelves that were empty, begging her silently to fill them with volumes of novels that were dear to her. In the corner opposite of the window seat and bookshelves was a wireless.

Seeing where her eyes were now, Scorpius informed her, "I put powerful protective enchantments around this room that shields it from all of the rest of the magic in the house. That way electronics will work in here. The only magic that touches this room is a very basic protective charm that keeps people who aren't Malfoys from Apparating or Disapparating."

Her eyes continued to glance around the room. The fireplace was lit and blazing with warm red-orange flames that reminded her of the Gryffindor common room. To make her feel more at home, she noted belatedly that the colour scheme of the room was red and gold. Above the fireplace was a giant picture that was a replica of the one she had in her bedroom of her entire family.

"This is, if you will, your room," he said quietly as she walked over to run her fingers over the piano keys. "I tried to incorporate all of the things that are important to you; music, books, Gryffindor, your family..."

"Thank you," she still wasn't looking at him as she spoke. "I mean it, Scorpius. So much. Thank you for this. It's the most...the most wonderful surprise anyone has ever given me. The most thoughtful gift."

"I think that while creating this room for you, it also gave me a deeper understanding of who you are as a person. It is, truly, my privilege to be able to give it to you, Rose. You can put all of your own books on the shelves, and add your own touches, of course."

"I wonder if I would be able to put a telly in here? Would that work?"

"Yes, I don't see why it wouldn't. The wireless works flawlessly. I didn't think you liked the telly that much," he commented.

"I don't, but it seemed like you did."

"I admit, it fascinates me."

"Then we should put one in here so that after we're married we can watch movies together. There's plenty of space in here. This room alone is probably bigger than three of my flats put together."

"You want to share your room with me?"

"Of course. Perhaps not all of the time, but on occasion."

Scorpius wanted so badly to kiss her. But he refrained. Instead, he contented himself with wrapping his arms around her and setting his cheek on the top of her head. "Blimey I am lucky."

"Yes, you are," he could hear the smirk in her voice, knowing she was playing, but it still hurt when she made no attempt to reciprocate his feelings.

...

"Well he's done it now," said Rose weakly as she entered her flat. Albus and Louis were still there, just as she'd left them a few hours previously, playing a game of Exploding Snap.

"Oh dear," said Louis half-heartedly, "after our little chat you still went and ruined something, little cousin?"

"I didn't ruin anything! He did! After everything I talked about with you, Scorpius told me that he loved me."

"He didn't!" Al paled noticeably.

Louis choked on the water he was drinking, "No! Bloody hell!"

"He doesn't know, of course, about all of my, er...issues, as you two so kindly put it. So I gave him a bit of slack. I simply asked him to not say that to me again. That I wasn't ready to hear it."

"You'll have to tell him eventually," Albus stated.

"I don't plan on it for a very long time."

"Or you can privately work on the problem," suggested the ever cunning Louis.

"How the bloody hell can I work through this without telling him about it? He's kind of an important aspect to consider here, Louis."

"I have a few ideas..."

...

"Is she gone?" Unfortunately for Scorpius, his grandparents had decided to wait in another part of the mansion to speak privately with him.

"Yes," he replied curtly, "just a few moments ago she Flooed home."

"Good. Now we can speak openly. Tell us, Scorpius, what you mean by choosing her, of all witches, to marry? Don't look so surprised, we were told that she was your first choice. We only wish to understand why," Narcissa certainly sounded sincere, but Scorpius knew better.

"I already told you. I love her. I might not have been in love when I put her name down, but I love her now. I initially chose her because I couldn't imagine being with anyone else. The idea of being with Rose didn't repulse me as much as any of the other options. I've worked with her in school and knew her well enough to know that I could make a marriage between us work."

"You have no...ulterior motive?" asked Lucius as he templed his fingers together reminding Scorpius very much of the villain from the movie he had watched with Rose the previous night.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you attempting to get a better social standing? Certainly marrying a Weasley has social merits and you can't deny that her family is wealthy and exceptionally influential in the Ministry. You could be well-placed to become Minister of Magic in a very short amount of time."

"Power," Scorpius spat the word like a curse, "that's all you've ever cared about, Grandfather. Power and money. When will you learn that there is so much more to life? When will you learn what is truly important? Love, and loyalty, and honour..." not trusting himself to speak, he broke off there.

"I understand," said Narcissa with pursed lips, "why do you think I am not currently occupying a cell in Azkaban? You know the story, Scorpius."

"You loved my father so much you betrayed the Dark Lord to ensure his safety during the Battle," he sounded like he was reciting a well-memorized fact.

"Exactly. However I cannot deny the wisdom in Lucius's words. Why can't you have both? You love her; very well, that's fine. Why not use the assets that accompany her? She has an influential family, take advantage of that. Doing so doesn't mean you don't love her. It means you are wise enough to seize opportunities that are laid at your feet."

"See how fate has favored you?" Lucius said with pride. "To give you such a gift. Love, power, money, all in one."

Scorpius's brows furrowed as he thought over their words. For the first time, when his eyes met Lucius's, they were not filled with contempt, but with intrigue.

...

_Rose, _

_Nathan's trial will be held one week from today. You are required to be present. Your testimony is very important. Scorpius will have to be there as well, because it is against Scorpius that he has committed the worst crime (impersonating him illegally). Norah and Albus are required to be there as well, so don't be nervous. You'll do great. Just tell the truth. Blimey, I almost forgot to tell you the time of the trial. 8 o'clock in the morning. _

_Love, _

_Uncle Harry_

Rose was frowning at the note. She was happy that Zabini would pay for his crimes, but at the same time she knew the severity of this and being at a trial made her nervous.

Not to mention her mother would probably be there as she did work in the Law Enforcement branch of the Ministry. Normally the presence of her mother would comfort her, just not in this particular situation.

Of course the entire family knew of the incident by now and she'd gotten more letters than she cared to count asking how she was and if she was alright. Her parents had just left her flat moments before she'd received this letter. Even though they'd made sure she was alright immediately after it had happened, they were now a bit too coddling. Like her Grandma Molly.

It had been two days since she'd seen Scorpius. Honestly, she was avoiding him. Ever since he'd said those three dirty words. The sun had just set, and she knew Albus wouldn't be back that night. He had spent the past three nights at Norah's and Rose didn't see an end to that pattern any time soon.

Needing a distraction of some sort, she pulled a light traveling cloak over her shoulders and Apparated to the only place she could think of; The Leaky Cauldron. Her Uncle Neville and Aunt Hannah owned the place, although they weren't her _real _family, they might as well be as they were such close friends with her parents.

"Rose?" Austin Longbottom was behind the bar and Rose beamed at him. Despite the odd past they had, she was glad to see him. When they were young they'd been playmates, her first couple years of Hogwarts she had a large crush on him, he'd politely turned her down, then he became a sort of older-brother figure.

"Hey, Austin," she greeted him warmly, leaning over the bar to give him a swift hug. Her bottom settled onto a barstool as she placed her order, "Best firewhiskey you've got. And lots of it."

"Oh dear," he winced, "you must be having a rough day."

Rose thought over everything that was going on in her life at the moment and nodded. Nathan's trial, Scorpius's admission of love, the fact that she couldn't bring herself to say '_I love you,_' to anyone, not even her family, and how she was trying very hard to not doubt everyone who cared about her. "You have no idea."

He reached her a shot glass and filled it to the brim with the amber liquid. As he moved to return the bottle to it's place, Rose put a hand on his arm, "Leave the bottle."

With a worried look, he obliged, and moved on to greet the next customer. Rose drank. She drank and she drank and she drank until she was more drunk than she'd ever been before.

There was only one time before when she'd been properly drunk. Sixth year at a secret party in the Gryffindor common room to celebrate James's seventeenth birthday. That was nothing compared to this. Then, she'd been giggly, flirty, and fun. Now she was depressed and angry.

At random intervals she would cry, angrily rant about things to Austin, and then just stare intently at the wall while drinking some more. Finally, when she tipped the last contents of the bottle into her open mouth, Austin snatched it away and threw his apron onto the bar. "My shift is over," he said, "and I'm taking responsibility for you, Ms. Weasley."

Rose snorted in a very unlady-like fashion, "Thanks anyway, Auuuustin, but I don't need a babysitter."

"I'm not a babysitter," the only thing keeping him from laughing was his concern for Rose. "I'm an escort. I'll escort you home."

"I don't want to go home," when he attempted to politely help her from the stool, she pushed him away, nearly falling over.

"Where would you like to go then?"

Rose gave it some thought and said finally, "Malfoy Manor. I rather think I need to give Scorpy-boy a piece of my mind!"

"Scorpius?" Austin asked in surprise, "that's the bloke you've been talking about all night? Bloody hell, no wonder you wanted to get pissed! I'm so sorry for you, Rose, honey."

As if his approval was all she had needed, Rose obliged to letting him help her out of the bar and into the streets of muggle London. Not wanting to leave Austin's company quite yet, she said, "Can we just walk around for a few minutes? The fresh air is so nice."

"Of course," half supporting her, he walked with her aimlessly, with no particular destination in mind. "I can't believe the Ministry put you with Scorpius. I thought...oh, never mind."

"What did you think?" Rose was trying very hard to sober-up but was somewhat failing. Her words were clear, but her movements were clumsy.

"I thought that they would put you with me," was that a faint blush on his cheeks?

"Why would you think that?" she asked stupidly.

"I put your name down as my first choice. I reckon a lot of blokes did, but I still can't believe they chose _Malfoy_."

Annoyed that she was unable to follow what he was thinking, she snapped, "What are you talking about, Longbottom?"

"Don't you know?" he sounded truly shocked, "I thought for sure they would have told your Mum, as she works in that department. Rose, the purebloods, we were allowed to request a half-blood or muggleborn to be with."

"_What_?" she hissed in disbelief, "you lot were allowed to choose?"

"Only partially, obviously, but yes."

"And you...you wanted me?" they had stopped walking and she was trying very hard to stand on her own, without wobbling.

"Yes," his answer was instantaneous, "what bloke wouldn't? You're brilliant, beautiful, funny, and I know that for the past few years you've looked at me like an older brother, but I reckon I could've made you happy-"

Rose interrupted his eloquent speech by throwing her arms around his neck and stretching up to plant her lips on his. This kiss was not unlike the one she had shared with Scorpius days before. It also sent feelings of wonder and desire coursing through her. Austin had plenty of experience with snogging girls and this definitely worked in his favour now.

He groaned against her and snaked his arms around her waist to pull her flush against him. She couldn't tell how long they stood there snogging, nor did she care. All that mattered was how warm and wonderful he was.

Her hands slid down his shoulders to the front of his cloak, pulling it open and slipping her fingers through the material until they brushed the bare skin of his chest. "Rose," she wasn't sure if it was a warning or an expression of pleasure. Either way it gave her a thrill to hear her name fall from his lips in that tone.

Her own mouth was at his neck now, kissing and nipping as his large hands moved down until they were almost resting on her arse. Finally, they broke apart, both of them panting hard. "I'm sorry," she stuttered, blinking rapidly, "I don't know what came over me."

"Do you want to come home with me tonight?" his voice was low, rough, and so damn sexy.

"Excuse me?" her blue eyes widened.

"Don't worry, I have no plans of taking advantage of your intoxicated state. I can give you a sober-up potion and then let you make the decision that you want to make, but I would very much like it if you were to spend the night with me."

His meaning was clear and Rose's heart sped up into overdrive. The drunken fog of her brain fought with logic. Did she want to have a night of senseless passion with Austin Longbottom? A large part of her was screaming, '_Sweet Merlin, yes!'_ but another side was vehemently opposing this idea.

"But we're both engaged now, we have fiances..." she babbled.

"Sod them," his words were harsh, but true, she realized with a jolt. How many people were going to be faithful to their respective spouses in arranged marriages? There would probably be an innumerable amount of affairs going on very soon. Would she and Austin be one of them?

Quickly, her imagination spun into a '_What-if' _mode, thinking what things would be like if she accepted his offer. She could see herself meeting up with him secretly for years to come. Was that the sort of marriage she wanted?

With blurred, slowed movements, Rose shook her head, "No," her voice was still clear and steady, "I'm sorry, Austin, but I can't." Scorpius's face swam before her eyes and she heard those three blasted words again spilling from his mouth in her memory. What if he meant it? What if he truly loved her? She couldn't repay him this way.

"I wouldn't tell anyone," he vowed. Rose knew he wasn't trying to just sleep with her. She knew Austin well enough to know what he was offering her; a secret life with him that their spouses would never know about. Maybe even running off together one day, away from this madness.

Godric, a part of her wanted that _so bloody bad_. Did she love Austin Longbottom? No, not as anything more than a wonderful friend. But that was still more than she loved Malfoy. "Please," she whispered, confused and thoroughly intoxicated, "just take me to Malfoy Manor."

Austin's eyes looked sad for just a moment before he composed himself and took her into his arms, "Alright. Hold on."

Apparition. Not the most pleasant experience in the world. Especially when one was so full of alcohol that vomiting was a real possibility. Rose managed, however, to hold onto all of the firewhiskey currently sloshing around in her stomach and they appeared magically in front of the tall wrought iron gates.

When her hand touched the gates, they swung open and Austin escorted her all the way to the front doors. "Rose?" Scorpius opened the door, light spilling out onto the porch from the inside of the house, "Longbottom?" he growled.

"I'm just bringing her here, Malfoy," Austin didn't sound any more fond of Scorpius than Scorpius sounded of him. "She's quite drunk and requested that I bring her here. To you."

"Well, then, thanks...I guess," Scorpius lifted Rose easily as Austin had been supporting her as she had stumbled her way up to the mansion.

"You're welcome," it was said grudgingly and they both knew it, but still gave each other curt nods before Austin retreated into the darkness of the night.

"Hullo, Scorpius," said Rose grumpily as he carried her up several flights of staircases.

"Why are you drunk?" he asked abruptly.

"I wanted to forget," she mumbled, "about everything that's going on. I'm afraid that I was sick of being brave and decided to be a little coward for just one night."

"Drinking away your sorrows is cowardly," his voice was cold.

"Are you mad at me?"

He sighed heavily, "No, Rose, I'm not mad at you. Just disappointed. It's a bit of a blow when a man admits his love for a woman and three nights later finds that she has been drinking to cope with everything."

"I wasn't drinking because of you," she said in a surprised way, "well, okay, maybe a little, but not really. I was drinking because of Zabini and my own thoughts. Not to mention, if anyone should be mad, it should be me."

"Why should you be the cross one?"

They had reached his bedroom. Scorpius moved to push the door open but Rose objected immediately, "No. I want to go to my room, the one you made for me."

With a grunt, he continued on down the hallway a bit and they entered the room he had prepared just for her. He set her on the window seat then stood across from her.

"Now are you going to tell me why you're angry?"

Rose's face was pensive for a while, as if she couldn't quite remember what she'd been thinking of a few moments ago, but then she said with a gasp, "I remember! Austin told me," she stood on shaky legs and poked a finger into his chest, "that you _chose _me. What do you think I am, Malfoy? Some sort of...of trophy?" she screamed, "Some sort of prize? Someone who can be bought or sold like a...like a House-Elf?"

"I didn't _buy _you," he objected, his voice betrayed none of the panic he felt.

"You might as well have! Treating me like a common object! Like a whore! What was it like? Did all of you pureblood prats get together and then bid on which person you wanted to marry like a bloody auction?"

"No! Rose, it wasn't like that, please-"

"Why?" she cried, her voice cracking, finally showing how truly drunk she was, "why the...fucking-" she hiccuped, "hell did you choose me of all people?"

Not wanting to reveal the deeper more complex reasons to her while she was in this state, he simply said, "I couldn't imagine being with anyone else."

Taken off guard by this, she stumbled back, tilted her head to look up at him with a frown and said, "Oh. I see. You thought I was the best," this filled her with a secret happiness. When she had previously been so bloody angry with him it was quite a turnaround to now feel flattered. With a giggle she added, "you wanted me." just as she had said to Austin.

"I did," Scorpius affirmed.

"So did Austin," she commented as if she were making a casual observation, "and I kissed him."

"Tonight?" Scorpius felt his chest tighten. He couldn't breathe.

"Yes," Rose didn't sound ashamed, "I kissed him tonight. Before he brought me here. He wanted to take me home with him. He offered...well, you know."

Scorpius thought he might be sick. To think! Albus had worried about Austin Longbottom being competition to him when in reality he was competition to Scorpius. "What did you say?" he wasn't sure he wanted to hear the answer.

"I told him no. That I was engaged."

This startled Scorpius so much that he couldn't help the next question that escaped him, "Why? I didn't think you wanted me. Wouldn't Austin have been preferable?"

She shrugged unconcernedly, "Perhaps."

"Then _why didn't you go with him?_"

Rose blinked as if she didn't quite understand the question. In her head, she repeated the question several times, unable to put her answer into words. How could she explain to him that she'd seen his face, that she didn't want to hurt him, that although she didn't love him she cared about him very much? The easiest response she could give him was simply, "You tasted better."

"I tasted...what?"

"You tasted better. Snogging Austin was like snogging any other bloke. But snogging you is like...like sunshine. It's bright."

"My kisses are...bright?"

"Yeah," she encouraged, truly believing that she was explaining herself well when in reality it was rather muddled, "like everything was dark and I was living in the dark but you made it light."

"I see," he was now very concerned about her well-being, "do you need to lie down, love? You're swaying on your feet."

"Read to me," the request was so sudden and strange that Scorpius wasn't sure he heard her correctly until she spun around, plucked a book from the shelf that Scorpius had put there, and handed it to him.

Without saying anything, he sat on the window seat and Rose curled up with him. Scorpius conjured a blanket, covering both of them with it, and he opened to the first page of the book and began to read. Neither of them were paying attention to the story, really. Before he reached the third chapter she was asleep and before he reached the fourth, so was he.

...

"Owwwww. Oh, my head," Rose moaned as she sat up the following morning. Her body was cuddled up with Scorpius's and if she hadn't been so hung over she would have liked it.

"Mmm," he mumbled, "Morning."

"How did I get here?"

"You don't remember?" he sounded alarmed. Worry coated his words.

Rose closed her eyes and tried to recall everything she could from the previous night. "I remember that Austin offered to escort me home," blurred pictures of the bar, Austin offering his hand, and Rose accepting, ran through her mind.

"And then?"

"That's it," and she meant it. Everything was black after that. Very vaguely she had the feeling that she should be mad about something and a lingering feeling of guilt plagued her, but the events were lost in her intoxicated state. "I assume I must have asked him to bring me here."

"That's right," relief was in his voice now, "you did. Then you asked me to read to you and we fell asleep right here." Joy was bubbling just under the surface of his calm composure. She didn't remember! She didn't remember that he had chosen her! She wouldn't be angry with him for it or hold it against him because she didn't even know!

"Thank you, then, for taking care of me," embarrassedly she climbed off of him and attempted to smooth down her rumpled skirt.

"It was no problem. Any time you need anything, I'll be here. Now, how about breakfast?"

Awkward. That was the only word that came to her mind. Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy sat across from Scorpius and Rose at the dining room table and she could read their faces as if they were screaming their thoughts at her.

Clearly it looked like she had spent the night with Scorpius. With red-tinted cheeks Rose asked softly, "Pass the jam please, Mrs. Malfoy?"

With a small smirk that was barely holding back laughter, Astoria said, "Here you are, dear, help yourself to anything you wish, as I see you already have helped yourself to our son," a giggle burst through at the end.

Rose flushed even darker, but she dared not correct their assumptions. It was worse, she thought, for them to think she was a drunk than a slag. With her head held high exhibiting all the courage she could muster, she sat through the longest meal of her life.


	9. Darker Emotions

**A/N: Let me warn you that you're going to get a small glimpse into Scorpius's darker side in this chapter. Even if it hasn't surfaced much before, it is there. Also, you get to see a bit of how different characters deal with their darker emotions; namely anger and guilt. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. All recognizable characters, ideas, events, places, etc. belong to JK Rowling. I also do not own One Direction, I just quoted a line from one of their songs.**

…**.**

Rose didn't know what had changed but suddenly she felt happy that the Ministry had chosen Scorpius to be with her. What had happened the other night? Did he somehow convince her that he truly loved her?

All she knew was that something significant had happened because something deep inside of her had changed. There was nobody she wanted to discuss this with, either. Because that would mean admitting that she'd gotten piss drunk. Quite frankly she was ashamed of that fact. Not because she was against drinking, but because of her reasons for it. To forget.

Ironic now that she had wanted to forget and couldn't remember anything that had taken place. Louis and Albus were always there for her and they wouldn't think badly of her for it, but she just couldn't bring herself to tell them.

A light tapping sound brought her out of her thoughts. There was an owl at the window that belonged to Scorpius. With a sigh she let it in, took the note meant for her, and shooed it back out the way it had come.

_Rose,_

_Would it be alright if I called on you this afternoon? Perhaps around two o'clock? _

_Scorpius_

A derisive snort escaped her. He wanted to _call _on her? Why did it sound so formal? In an endearing way she almost found it cute. Still smirking she turned the piece of parchment over, scribbled her answer, and sent it off with one of Al's owls.

What she really needed to do was bake. Quick as she could, she was in the kitchen with an apron on. With a sharp flick of her wand the radio began blaring whatever CD she'd been listening to last. When her hair refused to stay out of her face she twisted it up into a bun and used a handy little spell to hold it in place. For good measure she stuck her wand threw the red mop. At least then it should be out of the way of any stray ingredients.

The last time she'd baked, it had ended up covered in sugar and multi-coloured candy sprinkles. Baking was the best way she could think of to keep her mind off of any disturbing or confusing thoughts. Like Scorpius.

She'd left his mansion the day before in a hurry and didn't look back. Now he was writing letters to her in such a formal manner that she almost felt uncomfortable. _Don't think about him_, she scolded herself and continued with her distractions.

...

Scorpius knew he should be furious. To an extent, he definitely was. For example, the next time he saw Austin Longbottom he was fairly certain that he was going to punch him right on the nose. Strangely he wasn't mad at Rose.

At first he'd tried to justify her actions by reminding himself that she'd been drunk when she kissed Austin. Deep down he knew that wasn't an excuse. With all he was learning about his betrothed, one important thing that he'd almost forgotten was that she was terrified of the unknown and also of any deep feelings.

It made sense then, that she'd considered Longbottom. He was safe to her. They'd known each other since they were children. Not only was he a safe option, but she also didn't have any feelings for him other than friendship. That's what Al had told him, anyway.

Because Scorpius had told Albus about the entire ordeal. Leaving out the bit where Rose got upset because he had chosen her. The two of them had spent the entire previous evening discussing Rose's drunken decisions and they'd reached the same conclusion.

What mattered wasn't that Rose had kissed another bloke. It was that she kissed another bloke, turned him away, and came to Scorpius. Thus he felt rather happy at the moment. The witch he loved had, in some weird, twisted, and drunken way, chosen him.

Too bad she didn't remember that.

Her reply to his note had been a hastily scribbled 'yes.' He still had an hour before he had to be at her place, and there was someone he needed to see. With a dark grin he Apparated to London.

"Scorpius?" she was sitting in the back corner of the cafe and he weaved through the tables to her.

"Melanie," it had been a bit of trouble finding out who Longbottom was engaged to, but well worth the gold he'd paid for the information. Melanie Pole had been one of Rose's roommates at Hogwarts and if his informant was to be trusted, Melanie had been Rose's best girl friend for years. Although since then they had some sort of falling out.

Having been close to the Weasleys would have made her close to the Potters and Longbottoms as well, thus she had been Austin Longbottom's _second _choice. "When I received your letter I had half a mind to not show up. I don't think we've ever actually spoken to each other before. But curiosity got the best of me in the end," she shrugged.

"I know something that might be of interest to you," he said without preamble.

"I gathered as much from your rather cryptic letter. Care to tell me what it is?"

"The ministry has seen fit to pair you with Austin Longbottom, yes?" he waved away the muggle waitress who had come to take his order.

"Yes," she smiled faintly, "we dated for a bit at Hogwarts during my fifth year when he was a seventh year so it's not too awkward. We're just getting to know each other again."

"You sound rather happy about that," Scorpius's eyes were dark as he spoke. A side of him that normally remained dormant had come to the surface.

"I am," she purred, "he told me about how the Ministry let the purebloods request who they wanted to marry and how he put my name down."

"Interesting," Scorpius mused. The waitress reappeared and raised her eyebrows, as if demanding that Scorpius order something. "Coffee," he said quickly, "black. Make it to-go."

"He's alright, isn't he? Austin? You're asking a lot about him."

Scorpius smiled in a way that showed all of his teeth. It was quite a threatening smile, "I'm sure Longbottom is in perfect health," he rather sounded like he wished to change that.

"Then what's going on, Malfoy? I'm tired of you beating around the bush," Melanie snapped.

Scorpius took the styrofoam cup of coffee from the waitress, gave her some muggle money that was more than enough to pay for it and said casually, "You weren't his first choice."

"Excuse me?" Melanie bristled.

"Longbottom chose you _second_."

Melanie Pole looked completely shocked. "How dare you! How dare you come in here and spout such lies!"

"Oh, I'm not lying," he sipped at his coffee, "would you like to know who his first choice was?" Melanie said nothing. "Rose Weasley."

"That bitch!" Melanie slammed her fist onto the table.

"I would greatly appreciate it if you would refrain from insulting my fiance as she had nothing to do with Longbottom lying to you."

"How do you know this, Malfoy? Why should I believe you?" her eyes were shooting daggers at him from across the table.

"Two nights ago my fiance went to the Leaky Cauldron. When she was quite intoxicated, Austin offered to take her home. Along the way he decided to kiss her and offer to take her back to his place for the night."

All of the colour drained from Melanie's face. "He wouldn't do that..." even as the words spilled out of her mouth memories came rushing back to her, "two nights ago," she mused aloud, "I went to the Leaky Cauldron while he was at work. I saw Rose there, but she didn't see me. We tend to...avoid each other. I pulled Austin aside and asked if he wanted to come to my place after work. He turned me down and said he was rather tired and just wanted to go back to his flat and sleep."

Scorpius had known this already. The only thing she said that interested him was the fact that she and Rose avoided each other. What was that about? Hadn't they been friends at one point? "I'm sorry," he said although he didn't sound sorry at all.

She got to her feet and snatched up her purse. "I'm going down there right now and giving him a piece of my mind! I'm going to curse his arse until he's a mutilated puddle of goo!" she growled.

Still grinning like the devil Scorpius said happily, "Excellent plan."

Without saying another word to him, she swept from the cafe. He leaned back in the chair taking another swallow of coffee. If he had been a Gryffindor he probably would have gone directly to the Leaky Cauldron himself and beat the shit out of Longbottom. But he was a Slytherin and Slytherin's didn't play fair. They played dirty. They didn't get revenge on people who wronged them, they _destroyed _them.

Feeling smug with himself, he extracted his pocket watch and glanced at the time. He had just enough time to finish his drink before going to see Rose.

...

Two o'clock sharp he was at her door. There was loud, and rather obnoxious, noise coming from the other side of the door. He knocked hard. Several times. Eventually he came to the conclusion that she simply couldn't hear it. Tentatively, he turned the doorknob and inched the door open. "Rose?" he called.

Her voice reached his ears, but she wasn't speaking, she was singing. Not wanting to embarrass her, he almost retreated, then he thought better of that idea and let himself into the flat. Thankfully whatever Merlin-awful music she had playing was one of the CD's he'd made a copy of and listened to at his home. He knew the words to this one.

When he rounded the corner into the kitchen his casual face turned into a devilish grin. The beautiful witch was facing away from him, dancing in a rather provocative manner, with her arms above her head, sliding down, running the length of her own body, shimmying and moving in ways that should be illegal.

Not wanting to disturb her, but knowing that he needed to get her attention, he reached out a hand to grab hold of hers and spun her around to face him. Frankly, he didn't know how to dance in any way except formal ballroom dancing. So that was what he did now.

It was strange, he thought, that this type of sweeping dancing went with the music, but somehow his quick-paced waltz/tango improvisation did. Their bodies weren't touching aside from the hand he had on her waist, the hand she had on his shoulder, and their intwined hands. With a spin, he joined in with her singing.

"_If you don't wanna take it slow, and you just wanna take me home, baby say yeah yeah yeah..."_

Her wide blue eyes registered surprise as he pulled her hard against him and sang firmly, "_...and let me kiss you."_

Their twirls and dips moved them quickly out of the kitchen and into the sitting room. Being unfamiliar with the flat worked in Scorpius's favor. Right when he was about to spin her around again, the back of his knees hit the arm of the sofa and he toppled over it, with Rose still held tightly in his grip.

They landed softly onto the cushions, Rose on top of Scorpius, her legs tangled with his. Their noses were brushing and she was panting slightly from the physical exertion of so much dancing. He gazed up into her eyes, silently asking for her permission.

To his shock, it was granted. No words were spoken between them. Instead of answering his unspoken question, she dipped her head down to taste his lips. Something she had never felt or experienced before had hold of her.

With a start she realized that this emotion had a name. _Desire_. Her hands tangled into his blonde hair, running it through her fingers, as her lips continued to move against his in the most delicious way. Her heart sped up and her legs slid, as if they knew instinctively what to do, around his body.

Scorpius obliged to her body language, sliding himself up the couch so his length was stretched across it and they were snogging more comfortably. This side of Rose was new to him but he had always suspected it was there, just beneath the surface. This burning fiery passion.

Delicate hands tugged impatiently at his plain white t-shirt and he sat up, pulling it up and over his head, tossing it the ground. Rose moaned as she ran her hands up and down his chest. There was a light patch of blonde hair in the center, and the muscles rippled beneath her fingertips.

Her lips skimmed across his collarbone and his strong arms tightened around her. A voice in the back of her mind was telling her not to push this too far. Keep it from reaching the point of no return. But sod that damn voice, she wanted this.

His fingers fumbled with her wand that held her hair in place with it's spell, tugging it free so her long hair cascaded down over her shoulders. A slight thrill of fear ran through her at the idea of someone else having hold of her wand, but it went as quickly as it had come. Because it was Scorpius who had hold of it. He wouldn't use it against her.

As if in stride with her thoughts, he let it drop to the floor with a soft clatter and continued running his hands up and down her sides. Taking the next step, Rose sat up so she was straddling him in a rather intimate way, and pulled her own shirt off, throwing it to the floor.

Scorpius barely had time to think, '_Thank Merlin she's wearing a skirt,_' before she laid herself on top of him again, pressing her nearly naked upper body against his with need. That was when she came to her senses; Rose didn't _need _this. She was in control of her own body, her own feelings, her own sex drive.

Abruptly she sat up, "What am I doing?" the question was asked aloud.

"Snogging me," said Scorpius innocently, "and doing a rather magnificent job of it."

His eyes flicked down to her breasts for just a moment then back up to her face, his eyes now openly displaying his wanton lust and appreciation. In a startlingly fast move, she was off of him and pulling her shirt on.

"Leave," she snapped.

"What?" Scorpius sat up and scratched his head, completely dumbfounded. For one wonderful moment he'd allowed himself to hope that perhaps she was ready to lose her virginity to him. His hardened length was aching in his trousers, and she was telling him to leave?

"Get out," she said this firmly.

"Rose, I'm sorry, I didn't mean for that to happen," he quickly backtracked, knowing that when a witch was angry, you had better damn well apologize and fast.

"I know, I know," she ran a hand over her forehead, "it's not you, it's-"

"What?" he mocked, "going to say 'it's not you, it's me'?" her face flushed and he knew he'd been correct. "What does that even mean, Rose? You just took control, practically molested me on your sofa, not that I mind, and now you're angry with me?"

Rose straightened at his words. She'd never seen this side of him before. This angry and assertive side. Although she wasn't about to admit it, she liked this side of him. "No, I'm not angry with you, I'm angry with myself, and if you don't mind, I'd like you to leave so I can give myself a good scolding!"

It sounded mad, but it was the truth. The moment he was out the door she would berate herself for what she had initiated. "Do you regret it?" His voice was calm again.

"No. Yes. I don't know."

"I sure as hell don't. Matter of fact I think we should do that again," he boldly reached a hand out to tug at the hem of her shirt.

Her hand smacked his away, "If you try, I'll break your fingers! I really need you to leave right fucking now, Malfoy!"

With one last angry glare, Scorpius threw his hands up in surrender, "Bloody fine! But just so you know, I sincerely wanted to spend time with you today. I didn't come over here for...for that," he motioned vaguely to the sofa and then he was gone.

One careful step at a time she backed herself against the wall and slid down it, drawing her knees into her chest and barely restraining the tears that threatened to fall. It truly wasn't his fault. He'd done nothing wrong. Oppositely, he did something amazingly right.

Rose was mad at herself for what had happened, not him. How could she be cross with him for anything? He was so sweet and considerate and caring. Perhaps, as Albus had assumed, she was starting to fancy him. Just a little. Her body obviously fancied him quite a lot.

Even now her entire frame was vibrating with excitement, aching to be touched in ways she had never been touched before. She wasn't comfortable with those desires so, again, she found herself taking her emotions out on Scorpius.

With an enraged snarl she vowed to herself that she would never let that happen again. She would never take things out on Scorpius. Maybe it would help if she was a sane human being and instead of reacting violently all of the time she actually talked about what was bothering her?

She debated on going to find Albus and Louis. They were always willing to listen to any crazy thoughts that entered her brain. They were her best mates and she trusted them. But no, they weren't the people she desperately needed to speak to.

As she thought of them now, she remembered Louis's advice for helping her deal with her past. Yes, home was the place she needed to be. That was where she found herself. Her parents lived in Godric's Hollow, just a few streets away from the Potters.

The place was so familiar and comforting to her. Godric's Hollow would always be home. The sun was high in the sky at the moment and memories flooded her mind; summer days spent with her cousins riding bicycles and playing catch with Quaffles and laying on the grass looking for shapes in the clouds and so much more.

"Daddy?" when she entered through the side door of the house, she found her father sitting at the kitchen table going over paperwork for the joke shop.

"Hullo, Sweetheart," said Ronald Weasley as he pushed the parchments aside and stood to hug her. "What brings you here? I can tell there's something on your mind."

"I was just stopping by to say..." she gulped, "that I love you," he heard the words despite the fact that they were whispered.

His eyes widened. He hadn't heard Rose say those words to him in a very long time. It was a rare occasion for her to feel the need to say them. Of course, he always knew she felt it, but it was wonderful to hear it.

"I love you, too, Rosie," he hugged her again, tighter this time, trying to express in that one embrace how much her words meant to him.

"Where's Mum?"

"Sitting room."

Rose nodded, the look on her face stoic, as she marched through the house to her mother. Hermione Weasley was on the sofa with such a random assortment of items scattered around that at first Rose didn't know what on earth she was doing.

Then she noticed the vase in her mother's hands. Hermione plucked up a couple of roses from the coffee table, put them into the vase, then poured in a small bag of marbles. "What are you doing?" even though she knew, the question escaped her anyway.

"Making the center pieces for your wedding reception."

That was her breaking point. Rose threw an absolute fit. She snatched the vase from her mother's hands and smashed it against the wall. "I don't like them!" she shouted, "I hate roses! I hate the colour yellow!" each statement was punctuated with her stomping on something, throwing something, or tearing something apart with her hands.

"Rose!" Hermione exclaimed in shock, but she wasn't done yet. Screaming incoherently now, Rose trashed every wedding item in the room. She shredded the invitations, threw bags of marbles out the window, set fire to the large collection of roses, and when everything was destroyed, she stood in the center of the room breathing heavily.

Very deliberately she extracted her wand from her cloak and gave it a wave. Every bit of debris vanished. The room was spotlessly clean and everything Hermione had been working on was gone.

"I apologize for the manner in which I handled myself just now. However, I think it's best if I take over the decorations and plans for my own wedding." Rose sat down on the sofa, motioned for her mother to leave, and pulled a sheet of parchment toward herself.

On the very top she began writing the names of flowers; _Lily of the Valley, Ivy, Snap Dragons..._ Hermione stood, moved to the doorway where her husband was just coming around the corner to see what all of the commotion was about, and said, "Finally."

"What?" Ron asked in bewilderment.

"Don't you see it?" Hermione was positively beaming, "Rose actually cares about this wedding now. She wants to do everything herself. Make her own plans."

"So does that mean she fancies Malfoy now?" Ron looked disgusted at the thought.

"I believe that it does."

Their conversation had been whispered so Rose couldn't hear them. Now she looked up and said, "Mum, I am grateful for all of the effort you put in and I'm sorry I ruined your hard work."

"It's no problem, dear, you do what you want. It's your wedding."

"Thanks. Oh, and Mum? I love you."

...

Leila Scamander walked alongside Fred Weasley down the main street in Hogsmeade toward the Hogsmeade branch of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, which Fred managed.

"Lovely Leila," said Fred, "as much as I enjoy making small talk with you, I can tell something is on your mind. What brings you here?"

She fidgeted with her engagement ring on her finger, feeling like it weighed a hundred pounds. "Did you give Heather her ring?"

"Yes, I did. She loved it, of course. Rose has magnificent taste."

"And did you tell her that you chose her?"

"Yes," Fred replied honestly.

"How did she take it?"

"Quite well. She was flattered, of course, but Heather and I aren't in love. I also told her that she was my second choice and not my first. I think it's best to start relationships with honesty, don't you?"

"Bloody hell, I bet she didn't like hearing that!"

Fred gave a jerk of his head, "I don't think she cared really. I'm sure I wouldn't have been her first choice, either. That doesn't bother me. We've been friends for years and we're both committed to making a marriage work, even if we never really fall in love with each other we still make each other happy."

"I know what you're thinking," Leila accused.

"Pray tell, master Legilimens," he teased, "what is on my mind at this very moment?"

"You're thinking that I'm a silly little coward for not telling James yet. But it's so different, Freddy. James and I _are _in love. I'm not comfortable with keeping secrets from him, but I'm afraid he'll be upset if I tell him."

"Why would he be upset?"

"He had no say whatsoever. He had no control over this. When I first received the letter saying I was supposed to request three blokes to marry, I almost asked James his permission for putting his name down first, but I was too embarrassed to admit that he was my first choice. You know, at the time I didn't think he liked me as anything more than a mate."

"If he's mad at anyone, Le, it will be the Ministry. Not you. I am under the impression that he would be happy to learn that you chose him."

"It's only one week until the wedding," was she trying to change the subject?

"I'm aware," he deadpanned.

"I think I'll tell him that night."

"Before or after shagging him senseless?" Fred teased.

Leila giggled, "I haven't decided yet. See, if I tell him before then he won't be angry for very long because he'll be so desperate to get into bed with me. But if I wait until after then he will be so satisfied he won't get very worked up about it."

"Blimey, you really have thought this all through, haven't you?"

"It's been on my mind a lot."

"There you two are!" James came out of Three Broomsticks with a bottle of butterbeer in hand, waving at his two best friends.

Both Leila and Fred flushed guiltily and James quirked an eyebrow at them. "Hullo, love," Leila skipped up to him and gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"Everything alright?" he looked from her to Fred and back again.

"Just peachy, mate," Fred replied.

Not entirely convinced, James shrugged, "Come on in here, I was just discussing with Rosmerta the idea of having her bartend at our reception."

"What about the Longbottoms?"

"They're close family friends. I don't want them working at my reception! I just want them dancing and enjoying themselves with everyone else!"

Feeling simultaneously proud and guilty at her fiance's kindness, Leila gave him a half-hearted smile and let him pull her into the pub.

...

"Can I ask you something without insulting you?" James asked as he and Leila made dinner together that night.

"It depends. If you ask what my weight is, I'll curse you where you stand."

He chuckled weakly, "Nothing like that."

"What's wrong, James?"

"It's just that I noticed you and Fred together in Hogsmeade today. You looked awfully chummy."

Leila smirked at him, "Are you jealous, Darling?"

"I might be," he mused airily, "but seriously, Le. I know that we didn't exactly choose our situation. Do you and Fred - I mean is there anything going on - would you rather be with him?" The words were wrenched from him with trepidation.

Her eyes widened in surprise, "James Sirius Potter," she breathed, "how could you even think such a thing? There is nothing going on between Fred and I. I promise. We've always been close friends and we happened to be discussing Heather, if you must know."

"Ah, I'm an idiot," James cringed.

"Yes, you are," Leila agreed and hugged him tightly. With her face buried in his chest, she allowed her features to twist into one of fear and guilt.

...

Scorpius wandered around muggle London for a long time, unsure of where to go. All he wanted was to make her happy, was that so much to ask? Apparently it was. With a curse he kicked at a brick wall beside him.

Not wanting to think about Rose, his mind landed instead on the topic of his grandparents. Their words still circled around in his head, tempting him like his own personal demon. Of course power had a certain allure to him. Of course he wanted it.

Rose, the object of his love and affection, was unresponsive to all of his pursuits thus far. Well, maybe not entirely as she had responded quite enthusiastically not long ago. But that wasn't enough. One time she allowed herself to feel what she was feeling. It was a baby step if anything.

Wanting power was like alcoholism, he knew, as he'd watched it's effects on his grandfather. The more you had the more you wanted. Like a drug. You would become dependent on it; lost without it.

Using his marriage with Rose as a step up a social ladder felt wrong and dirty, but was it? Or was he, as he grandfather had asserted, too weak to seize such an opportunity?

Being a Malfoy gave him a taste of power, but it hadn't come as naturally to him as it seemed to come to his relatives. It had been an acquired taste. He was used to people listening to him and wanting to please him. How much more would that influence stretch when he was a member of both the Malfoy family and the Weasley family?

As his thoughts went again to Rose and how frustrated he was with her, and to his grandparents and how reasonable they'd sounded, and to his own heart, asking what he truly wanted, he made his decision.

...

Rose stayed at her parent's house for the rest of the day and for dinner as well. Family dinners was something she hadn't realized how much she missed. They had a small square dining table at which she was seated across from Hugo.

Under the table, she kicked at his shins and he stuck his tongue out at her. "Kids," said Ron out of habit. Hugo and Rose giggled at each other and continued eating. "This is really good, Hermione," her husband complimented.

"Thanks, Ron," she beamed across the table at him, "It's a new recipe Angelina gave me the other day."

The family ate in silence for a while and then, "This is nice," Rose said quietly. Everyone looked up at her in confusion. "I was just thinking how it will never be like this again. Just the four of us. In two weeks I'll be married to Scorpius and it will just be different."

"He's welcome to eat here whenever he wants," said Hermione while Ron scowled.

"I know," she sighed and threw her napkin onto her empty plate. "May I be excused?"

"Yes," said Hermione, although she sounded concerned, "Did you get a lot of things done for the wedding?"

Rose blushed, "Yes, actually I did. That was why I wanted to be excused. There are a few arrangements I wanted to discuss with Scorpius."

"Oh," Hermione tried to hide her surprise, "Well go ahead, then. We love you, Sweetheart."

Rose went to each of her family members in turn, hugged them, said that she loved them, too, and left. The Patronus soared away from her in the night and she hoped Scorpius would respond to it. She'd been awfully cold to him earlier and knew she didn't deserve a response from him.

When she reached her flat, however, it was to find Scorpius waiting outside her door for her, looking apprehensive. "Hi," she said quietly.

"Hullo," his reply was cold.

"I'm sorry," she said at once. Then she took hold of the front of his robes and stretched up to kiss him lightly on the lips. "I would very much appreciate it if you came inside with me. There are some things I wanted to discuss with you."

"What sort of things?"

She swallowed, "I think that it's about time I told you why I've been pushing you away when you've been nothing but kind to me."

"Alright," he consented, "lead the way."

...

Once they were both seated comfortably on the sofa, with two hot cups of tea in front of them, Scorpius decided to break the ice. "I've decided that I'm not going to start Auror training next month."

"What? Why not?" Whatever she'd been thinking of left her mind quickly.

"To be an Auror, you're given a lot of freedom, and a lot of power. I've recently come to the realization that I can't be trusted with power. I spent the afternoon speaking to a lot of different people in a lot of different positions, trying to figure out what job is the most humbling. I've decided I want to work in Muggle Relations, for your grandfather."

"What do you mean you can't be trusted with power?"

"It's too tempting for me. The day you were at my Manor, when you met my grandparents, they talked with me after you left. They told me that I could use my connections to you and your family to rise quickly through the Ministry. Even though I considered it, I know I couldn't use you and your family that way. It would be wrong. I love you more than I want power."

"Scorpius..."

"I know, you don't want me saying that I love you. But just because I don't say it doesn't make it less true."

Very deliberately, Rose leaned toward him and pressed her lips against his. Every time they did this she felt something inside of her tingling with anticipation. Before it could go any further, she pulled away. "It still makes me uncomfortable when you say it," she agreed, "but I'm not going to ask you to hide your feelings again. That wasn't right of me to ask of you and I'm sorry."

He eyed her curiously, "Apology accepted. Why the change of heart?"

"It's a long story."

"I have all night."

"I wasn't always this way. So distant and unfeeling. My first year at Hogwarts I was put into Gryffindor with four other girls; Helen, Becca, Wendy, and Melanie. We were really close for about five years, but I was closest to Melanie. The five of us would stay up late almost every night and talk about things girls normally talk about. Boys, make-up, clothes, boys, school, boys," she gave a soft laugh.

"What changed?" Scorpius encouraged.

"Everything. In fourth year I had my first kiss. Ethan Bones."

"The Ravenclaw Prefect in our year?"

"Yes, that's the one. Anyway, we started dating. I didn't tell anyone for a long time because I was so nervous that all of my cousins would become too overbearing and scare him away. I'd seen that happen to Roxie and Dominique both when they had their first boyfriends. To this day Albus even thinks that I was only with Ethan for a month, but we were actually together for a year."

"Did you two ever...?"

"Shag? No, we didn't. Which brings me to the next part of the story. Because I never told anyone about us, not even my best friends, Becca didn't know we were together. Apparently she fancied him. They started seeing each other secretly without me knowing about it."

"That bastard!"

"He's a bloke," said Rose tonelessly, "he wasn't getting what he wanted from me, so he got it from somewhere else. The reason Becca never told us about him is because she was ashamed. I guess he told her flat-out that he wanted nothing more from her than sex and she had agreed to it. How could she tell her best friends that she was shagging a guy she fancied even though he wouldn't date her?"

"Not all guys are like that, Rose."

"I know, but let me finish my story. I finally got up the courage to tell Melanie about Ethan and I. Mostly because she was my closest girl friend and as we aren't related, I thought she would be the most encouraging about my relationship. As it turns out, before I told her that Ethan and I were dating, she'd stumbled upon Becca and Ethan shagging in our dorm room and Becca had confessed their affair to Melanie as well."

"How did you take the news?" Scorpius asked.

"She didn't tell me," Rose looked down at the carpet now, unable to look Scorpius in the eye. "Instead she acted casually disconnected from the situation. I thought she would squeal with delight and we would gossip and jump around like girls do and talk about him, but she just shrugged and said that if I was happy with him then I should tell everyone and not hide our relationship."

"Ouch," he winced.

"Tell me about it. Talk about betrayal. That's not the last of it, though. Melanie also suspected that she knew the true reason why I was keeping my relationship with Ethan a secret. It was because I fancied myself in love with someone else."

"Who?"

"Austin Longbottom," Rose flushed shyly, "I'd fancied him for years. I didn't want him to know I was taken. So after talking to Melanie, I decided to announce to everyone my secret relationship. It was fifth year. In the Gryffindor common room, as most of Gryffindor was comprised of my family anyway, I just sort of...shouted it. I remember noticing that Becca looked horrified, but I thought that was because she was mad at me for keeping a secret from her."

"Did she fess up?"

"No, she continued sleeping with him behind my back for another month. Then she came clean and told me. Just the two of us were alone in our dorm when she made her confession. She said that she and Ethan had been shagging for months and that he decided he would rather be with her than me. She said she was sorry, hadn't intended for it to happen, didn't know that he and I were dating, but she loved him and wanted him and that was that."

"No! What a slag," Scorpius found himself becoming furious at these girls.

"I was devastated. Ethan broke up with me the next day, and I went crying to Melanie who then confessed that she'd known about it all along. We were talking quietly in a corner of the common room and when I angrily demanded why she hadn't told me sooner, she yelled loud enough for everyone to hear, '_I didn't tell you that Becca was shagging your boyfriend because I didn't think you would care. It's not like you actually fancy the bloke, Rose, we all know you're in love with Austin!'_"

"Are all of your friends bitches?" Scorpius inquired with an attempt to sound casual.

Ignoring the interruption, Rose snuck a quick glance at his face and said, "Austin was in the common room, too, of course, and hadn't missed what Melanie had screamed. So when I ran out of the common room, he ran after me. He told me that he hadn't known how I felt. He said that he thought of me like a little sister and that he loved me, but not in the way I claimed to love him. Then he told me that he'd been dating Melanie for several months. So not only did Melanie start dating a bloke she knew I was in love with, she also kept it a secret, and didn't tell me when she discovered that Becca was shagging my boyfriend."

"That's a really messed up situation, Rose, I'm having a bit of a hard time keeping track of all of the betrayals by this point."

"I did, too. I couldn't stand to look at either of them. I went to Helen, who was my next-closest friend in my dorm. She turned me away and said that I was the one who was in the wrong. She said that it was my fault for dating Ethan and keeping it a secret. I felt so bad that I almost believed her. Almost. I started to feel unnecessarily guilty and ashamed. Like I had brought all of this unhappiness on myself. Wendy came to me, then, and said that she was on my side. She said that Melanie was a whore, Becca was a bitch, and Helen had always been spiteful. Yet Wendy didn't want to be my friend anymore, either, because she was too afraid of getting on the wrong side of the other girls," Rose snorted, "Some Gryffindor, huh?"

"Rose, Honey, I'm so sorry, but that was a long time ago. Shouldn't you be over it all by now?"

She shook her head back and forth vehemently, "That wasn't the end of it, though. After that, every chance they got they would say mean things to me. They spread rumors about me. They turned on me like they hated my guts. The worst part, I think, was that nobody saw how much pain I was in. Not Albus or Louis, or my parents or Hugo, nobody. They saw that I had changed. But that was all. They didn't know why or how, nor did they ask about it. They ignored it. That was when I stopped telling people I loved them. I had loved Wendy, Helen, Becca, and Melanie. I loved my cousins, my parents, my brother. But did they really love me if they didn't care enough to inquire about my well-being?"

"You thought they didn't love you?"

"How could I be sure anymore? I had been sure that my friends had loved me. I'd been sure that Ethan loved me. I'd been so wrong. But then you," This time when her eyes met his, they locked and held each other's gazes. "We'd only been together for a short amount of time, and you _saw _me. You knew me. I felt like you could see into my very soul in a way that nobody else could. You could tell when I was pushing you away, you could tell when I was upset, and you cared enough to ask about it. You cared enough to try to get me to work through it."

"Didn't anyone else?" Scorpius's heart hurt for the witch beside him.

"Louis graduated that year and left. Albus was a fifteen year old bloke, he didn't notice emotions at all. They just asked me about it a few days ago and we talked about everything. They apologized for being prats and suggested that I try to get over my issues by telling people I love that I love them. So I did, today I went to my family and told them all how much I love them. And Scorpius, I'm sorry, I don't think I'm in love with you yet. I want to be. I hope to be. I'm just not there yet."

"That's okay," Scorpius's hands were shaking when they reached for hers. He was so relieved and so happy that she was finally opening up to him. "I would wait forever for you, Rose, and I'm willing to wait however long it takes for you to love me back. But I do have a question. Longbottom...do you still love him?"

Rose snorted, "No. Absolutely not. I don't think I ever truly did. I just thought I did, you know?"

Scorpius nodded and pulled Rose onto his lap, "I'm not going to betray you. Or leave you. Or hurt you. You're right, Rose, I do see you. I notice everything about you."

"I know," she whispered, "I trust you, Scorpius. Please, prove to me that I'm right to trust you."


	10. A Bad Case of Nerves

**A/N: I apologize it has taken me so long to update! Normally my updates are a lot faster than this, but I have actually been working on a couple of other fanfics (some of which have not been posted yet at all) and I started school so I have been very busy. Also, I had a bit of trouble with this chapter so I'm sorry if it's rubbish, but the next one will be a lot better! James and Leila's wedding after this!**

**The title of this chapter is 'A Bad Case of Nerves' because it seems like just about everyone in this chapter is nervous about something. **

**WARNING: Sexual content in this chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Enjoy!**

…**.**

The blue bath towel covered more than most dresses did, but the way Albus was looking at her now, she would have thought she was naked. His eyes raked her body twice before he finally focused on her face.

Her damp hair was held up on top of her head with a clip as she rummaged through her closet. "I've lived in this flat less than a month and I've already made such a mess that I can't find that blasted pink shirt," she bent down to search the floor of the closet, "and stop looking at my arse, Albus. I can practically feel your eyes on it."

He gave a chuckle, "I can't help it when you put it on display like that for me. Merlin, there's just something _intimate_ about towels, you know? They make you think of what's under them and about showers..." he tailed off.

"Intimate?" Norah turned to face him with the elusive pink shirt now in her hand, "Godric, you'd think I was wearing lingerie with the way you're looking at me!"

Albus gulped, "Do you...own any lingerie?"

Norah tapped her chin thoughtfully, as if unable to recall, "Hmm, you know, I just might." They both knew he wasn't inquiring about a simple bra and panties. He had something much more risqué in mind.

"Do I get to see it?" he requested boldly.

"Perhaps. But not today. Go take a shower, silly, we're supposed to meet your brother in half an hour!"

"Are you going to join me?"

"Why would I join you in the shower? I just got out of there."

"Looks like it's going to be a very cold shower," a dejected Albus dragged his feet all the way across the hall to the lavatory.

When they were both showered and dressed they arrived at James's house five minutes early. "Did you grab the bottle of wine?" she asked as she brought her hair over her shoulder, smoothing it down.

"Yes, although I still don't understand why James wanted us to bring it."

"I suppose we'll find out soon," Norah linked her arm through Al's and he knocked on the door.

Leila answered it with a smile and ushered them inside. To their surprise, the house was filled with people. Perhaps it was a house warming party? "Finally!" Lily snapped as she caught sight of Al and Norah, "we've all been waiting for you. You're the last to arrive."

"Hey, we're early!" Objected Albus.

"Alright everyone, listen up! Leila and I have an announcement to make!" James cupped his hands together over his mouth to yell over all of his chatting relatives. Silence fell through the house and everyone turned to look at James and Leila.

With a huge smile, Leila screamed happily, "James and I got married!"

Nobody did anymore than blink at them stupidly until James explained, "We eloped last night. No worries, though, we're still having the big wedding this weekend!"

Excited whispers broke out but Ginny's voice was raised above them, "James Sirius Potter! You couldn't wait a couple more days? You just ran out and got married without anyone else there when you were so close to your planned wedding?"

"We decided that the Ministry doesn't get to have the final say with everything. By law we had to get married, so we did. The date they give you is really more of a deadline anyway. So take _that _Ministry of Magic!"

Most people started laughing at that. Harry shook his head with a small smile, but Ginny still looked furious. Her first born had gotten married when she wasn't even in attendance at the wedding. "If you think we're still throwing you a big wedding after this, you are crazy!"

"Mum," James whined as he plopped down beside her, "Leila bought what I assume is a very pretty dress. Rose, Lily, and Roxy already purchased their bridesmaids dresses. You really can't disappoint them like this."

Ginny turned her head away from James but said in a defeated tone, "Oh, alright."

"Love you, Mum," James gave her a sloppy kiss on the cheek then went around the room, shaking hands and giving hugs of congratulations.

"I always knew you'd be my son-in-law," said Luna airily as she stretched up to hug James. "Ever since the first time you and Leila were intimate together all those years ago!"

Silence. You could have heard a wand drop. In a room that had previously been busting at the seams with noise, the silence was profound. "What do you mean 'all those years ago'?" inquired a curious Lysander.

"Didn't everyone else know?" asked Luna innocently, "I could tell right away. How old were you, Dear, fifteen? Anyway, I came home from shopping and they were sitting at the table playing chess. It was written all over their faces."

James ducked a curse that Lorcan flung at him and exclaimed angrily, "Thanks a lot, Aunt Luna!"

"It's 'Mum' now, Sweetie!" she replied with a smile.

"I can't believe you never told me!" accused an exasperated Fred.

Then it was noise and chaos once again. All of this seemed to be information overload for the Weasleys and Potters gathered there. Whenever he turned around, James caught snippets of conversations. People were saying things like, "Fifteen! That's awful young, do you think it's true?" and "I wish I could have two weddings," or "Twenty galleons says Lysander hits him with a hex before Lorcan."

Too happy to let his mood be spoiled by something as trivial as his deepest secret becoming common knowledge among his family, James pulled his new wife into his side and whispered conspiratorially, "Do you reckon they'd notice if we snuck off to the bedroom for a bit?"

Giggling, Leila shook her head, and the two disappeared down the hallway without anyone noticing their absence.

...

Rose and Scorpius left James and Leila's place shortly after the big announcement of their marriage and the fact that, apparently, they'd been having sex for years. At least that was what everyone was assuming now.

Scorpius wasn't used to all of the people that had been crowded into the house. Sensing his unease, Rose had made a graceful exit with her fiancé and they wandered up the street hand-in-hand. It had been the first time her father had properly met her fiancé, but they didn't really have the chance to say anything more to each other than a quick greeting before being distracted with other family members.

"Tomorrow's the trial," he said as he gave her hand a squeeze.

"Mmhmm. Then the day after that is James's wedding," Rose sighed.

"What's wrong?"

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Always know when something's bothering me?" she stopped walking and frowned up at him.

"I pay attention," Scorpius slid an arm around her waist and tucked it into the front pocket of her jeans. "Now what's on your mind?"

"I'm worried about the trial and I'm almost a bit jealous of James and Leila," Rose opted for honesty. If she was going to keep her promise about being open with Scorpius, honesty was the best way to start.

"What are you worried about and why are you jealous?"

"I'm worried because I don't think he'll get the time he deserves in Azkaban. I mean, normally with my uncle being Harry bloody Potter and my mum working in Magical Law Enforcement he'd get the maximum punishment, but with this marriage law in effect I have a feeling he'll be let off easy so he can attend his own wedding."

Scorpius shrugged, slowed down, and tugged her gently over to sit down on a stone ledge. "Either way I'm sure he'll have to spend some time in Azkaban. Maybe it will give him time to think about his actions. Maybe it will cause him to treat Dominique better. Now, why are you jealous?"

"For so many reasons," Rose's whole body deflated as she spoke. "They're so in love. They didn't have any of those pre-wedding-night jitters that are probably going to give me a heart attack. Not to mention they eloped before their given date, which makes me jealous because not only am I a complete wreck fretting about the wedding night, I'm also nervous about the actual wedding. I dislike being the center of attention."

Scorpius surveyed her with a very serious expression before saying quietly, "You don't have to be nervous about anything with me. I'll never hurt you or do anything you don't want me to do. Furthermore, you don't have to lie to me. I know you don't have stage fright. You gave a speech at graduation. In front of hundreds of people."

"That's different," she was quick to protest, "I was reciting words I'd written months prior to the occasion and I was stating facts. Not sharing a deeply emotional and intimate moment in front of them."

"Think of it this way. They're not witnessing a personal moment as much as sharing in your joy with you."

"My joy," Rose raked a hand through her disheveled hair. "Would you take offense if I told you that I don't know exactly how much joy I'm going to be feeling at that moment?"

"I understand," and he truly did. He just wished he didn't have to. He wished he could make her love him just as much as he loved her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered on an exhale.

"Don't be," he gave her a small smile, "I'm just glad that I can be here with you like this," he motioned to their entwined hands, "without you freaking out on me."

"Yes, well, don't get too used to it. You never know when I'm going to panic, slap you, and run away screaming."

As Scorpius laughed and let his lips press against her mess of curls, he knew that he was right where he belonged.

...

The trial was a bit of a farce and Rose was so angry about it that her face was nearly as red as her hair and her entire body was shaking. "They didn't even listen to me!"

It wasn't the first time she'd screamed that at nobody in particular. She was pacing around her flat while a random assortment of her male relatives (and her fiancé) were seated in the living room drinking tea and trying to talk about other things.

"Honestly! He's being released the day before his own wedding! That's not a punishment! It's a slap on the wrist. A slap on the wrist for impersonating _my _fiancé, physically assaulting _me_, and attempting to kidnap _my _soon-to-be cousin-in-law!"

"Merlin, Rose, the world doesn't revolve around _you_. How do you think Norah feels?" Of all people, it was James who was scolding her childish behavior.

"Nathan is her brother. I'm sure that somewhere, a tiny little part of her is slightly relieved that he didn't get into too much trouble," she grumbled in response.

"Couldn't be farther from the truth," Albus corrected as he kicked off his shoes. "She hates him more than you do, Rose, and that's saying something."

"He's my cousin," interjected Scorpius, "and I'm just as angry as you are. I just have a different way of handling it." He stood, plucked her wand from her tight fist and said apologetically, "Just a precaution, Love, don't want you accidentally hexing someone's balls off in a fit of rage."

Rose huffed but didn't argue with him. "Poor Dominique! I wonder how she's taking this news."

"A right sight better than you. She's at Norah's flat right now, the two of them are probably cooking up some crazy scheme in an attempt to save Dominique from what will obviously be a hellish marriage," Albus shuddered.

"Really? Do you really think so?" Rose had her hands clasped together in excitement as she turned to face her cousin. "If that's the case I need to get over there and help them!" She quickly snatched her wand back from Scorpius and the next moment she was gone.

"Fucking hell, Scorpius, can't you control your woman?" grumbled Louis as he rubbed his eyes in exasperation.

"Nobody can control Rose. Nor would I ever want to try. She might be a bit crazy, but I happen to admire that fiery passion she has about her," Scorpius said this casually but immediately every male in the room had his hackles up.

"You like her fiery passion, do you?" Fred asked with narrowed eyes. "You wouldn't happen to be imaging that fiery passion in other situations other than anger, right, Malfoy?"

Without even a hint of shame or fear Scorpius said evenly, "Of course I am. I'm marrying the witch after all. Who hasn't contemplated shagging his bride?"

Fred gave a quick laugh and James rolled his eyes. "We know Rose is seventeen. We expected that at some point she would be with a bloke. It honestly doesn't bother us if you're strutting around all day imagining our baby cousin naked. However, we do require that you respect her," James explained.

"Who wouldn't respect her? Godric, with that temper, I'd lose my bollocks if I disrespected her in any way."

"True," Al grimaced as he spoke, "I heard that Aunt Hermione was caught in the middle of one of Rose's many emotional tornados the other day. Apparently Rose went home to talk with her parents and she found Aunt Hermione working on wedding decorations. Uncle Ron said she _shredded _the roses-"

"She hates roses," defended Scorpius.

"- and she _threw the vases of marbles out a window_-"

"The marbles were yellow and Rose despises the color yellow," Scorpius interrupted again.

"- then she _incinerated _the invitations-"

"Of course she did, her mum put her middle name on them and Rose isn't fond of her middle name."

Before Albus could continue the story, Louis interjected, "Blimey, you really have it bad for our little Rosie, don't you? You sound like you know more about her than her own family."

Scorpius jerked his head self-consciously as he realized he might have revealed just a bit too much. "She's important to me. When she speaks, I listen."

"Well that settles it," James slapped his hands down on his knees, "No need to try to protect your balls from her wrath, mate, she's already got them in her fist."

All of the blokes laughed except Scorpius who made a face but made no move to deny the accusation.

...

"Soooo, what are we talking about?" Rose was shifting from foot to foot obviously uncomfortable in this situation. She had been admitted entrance into Norah's flat but now didn't know what to do with herself as she wasn't used to girly talk.

"Nathan sent me a letter," Dom said in a small voice.

"What does it say?" Rose crossed the room and sat down on the sofa beside Norah. Dominique was sitting cross-legged on the floor looking thoroughly downcast.

"Just that he's sorry for what happened. He said that he wants to try be a better person and that he's really going to try to make this marriage work," Dom didn't sound very happy about this.

"He's not inherently a _bad guy_," Norah winced as she spoke, as if she were unsure of her own words. "He has a temper and he's rather controlling, but it's not like he enjoys inflicting pain."

"To be fair, he didn't exactly beat me. Nor did he try to touch me inappropriately. He only hit me when I wouldn't give him information he wanted," Rose sounded like the words were forced from her. "Even though he clearly wasn't opposed to attacking me, he didn't have fun doing it, either."

"So essentially I'll be a prisoner in my own home?" Dominique quirked a perfect blonde eyebrow at the girls who sat across from her. "As long as I don't talk back or do something without his permission I won't be abused?"

"If he abuses you, you call Uncle Harry," said Rose fiercely. "Spouse abuse is against the law, Dominique. He won't get away with it."

"They'll just let him out again! The damn Ministry wants so badly for this law to be successful that they're going to give him lenient sentences so that we can work harder at making a marriage work. My father said I might be better off just fighting back. I may look delicate but I'm not some helpless little flower!" She tossed her golden hair back over her shoulder and tilted her head up defiantly.

"What about your mother? Has she given you any advice?"

"Yes," Dom rolled her large blue eyes. "She suggested that I move in with my aunt Gabrielle and become a French citizen. Can you believe that? She wants me to run away and hide! Like I would ever do such a cowardly thing! How could I leave Britain? It's my home."

"Maybe she has a point," when Norah said this, both Dominique and Rose turned to look at her in surprise.

"Clearly she's not a Gryffindor," said Dom lightly. All three girls giggled at this but the atmosphere was too fraught with tension and sadness for them to appreciate any real joke.

"My point is that you could do this until the law is repealed. It wouldn't be running away, it would be more like rebelling against the Ministry," Norah explained.

"No, rebelling against the Ministry would be to defiantly protest this law. Rebelling would be to refuse to attend your own wedding. Running to France would be running and Dom would never do it."

"You know me too well, cousin," Dominique smiled at Rose.

"You never know how many other couples might have problems like yours," said Rose thoughtfully. "Or other problems in general. It's possible that the more problems that arise, the more quickly this law will be repealed. The most any of us can do is hope for the best."

...

Rose released the quill and stretched her fingers. They ached from all of the writing she'd done. Before her was her completed wedding plans. It was almost a disappointment to recall that she should, probably, go over everything with Scorpius to make sure he didn't have any objections to her decisions.

Picking up the discarded quill once more, she penned a short note to him and sent it off with her owl. Not a long while later, he popped directly into her bedroom. "You said it was urgent?"

"Look this over and tell me what you think," without further explanation she thrust the parchment toward him and moved to sit on her bed. His eyes widened the more he read. Some of this was quite surprising. She wanted her wedding to be like this?

"Rose, are you sure…"

"Yes. I am sure about everything in there. I wouldn't have put it in writing if it wasn't what I wanted."

Gingerly, he lowered himself to sit beside her, keeping his eyes on the wedding plans. "I love it. I don't think I could've planned it better myself."

"Of course not," she bristled cockily. He reached a hand up to place on her cheek and gave her a fleeting kiss on the forehead.

His eyes were then caught by a bright shade of yellow fluttering from the open closet. Rose's bridesmaid dress was hanging up, ready for her to put on the following morning. "Is that for James and Leila's wedding?"

"Sure is," she grumbled. "Yellow looks ruddy awful on me, but Roxanne looks like a bloody model in hers. When I pick out the dresses for my bridesmaids…" she trailed off.

"Who are your bridesmaids going to be, Rose? It says here that you want six of them?" he consulted the parchment in his hands to confirm the number.

"Seven is the most powerfully magical number. Six bridesmaids plus me makes seven. Unfortunately, I have only picked a few bridesmaids so far. Roxanne, of course, was my first choice. Then I thought I'd like to ask Lily and…Norah."

"Norah? Any particular reason why? I didn't think you two really knew each other well."

"We don't, but she's close to you and I hope to be close to her eventually. So now I just need to choose three more. I debated on asking Leila, Heather, and Verity because they are marrying three of my best friends, but I have never even spoken to Heather or Verity before. Leila's a definite fourth. I haven't decided yet. Who will be your groomsmen?"

Scorpius sighed, "I feel like my options are even more limited than yours. Let's see…I'll ask Liam and Albus. Probably Louis as well. I'll definitely have to ask Hugo as he's your brother."

Rose wandered over to the frilly yellow dress and held it up to her person. "It's so short I'll probably be showing off my knickers while walking up the aisle."

Scorpius chuckled in appreciation, "I'll have a hard time keeping my hands off of you."

Her cheeks were crimson at his words but the next words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Will you stay with me tonight? Al is already at Norah's and I hate being here by myself."

"Aw, is the big brave Gryffindor afraid?" he teased.

"No," she all but growled. "It's just that I haven't slept well lately and, er, the last time that I did sleep well was the night I spent with you."

"You mean the night you were drunk? That's probably why you slept so well, Darling, you passed out."

"You know, when we first got engaged you were a perfect gentleman but lately you've been quite forward with me. Like you're not trying as hard to please me," she accused.

"I'm still a gentleman, Love, I just really enjoy flirting with you because you get so flustered." As he spoke he began to strip. His lithe fingers slid under the hem of his shirt, pulling it over his head and dropping it to the ground.

"Um, what are you doing?"

"Didn't you just invite me to sleep over? I'm not going to sleep in my clothes. Oh, don't give me that face, I promise your virtue isn't in danger, I'll keep my boxers on."

When his hands skillfully undid his belt Rose quickly spun around so she wouldn't be wantonly staring at him. She heard the rustling of his jeans sliding down his legs, the light squeak of her bedsprings, and knew that he was now in her bed. Her tiny twin sized bed. Blimey, she hadn't thought this through at all. How was she expected to sleep in a twin-sized bed with an almost-naked Scorpius?

"I'm going to the toilet. I'll change into my pajamas there," she still hadn't looked at him. Instead she kept her face turned away as she grabbed an old Quidditch jersey and pair of shorts from her drawer and ran out of the room.

Scorpius sighed, folded his hands behind his head, and gazed up at the ceiling. How long would it be until she was comfortable with him? At times she was but more often than not she was still so reserved. When she reappeared Scorpius's eyebrows rose until they disappeared into his shaggy blonde hair. The Quidditch jersey was a replica of one worn by Oliver Wood when he was a Keeper for Puddlemere and it hugged the curves of Rose's body as if it had been made for her. The shorts were so short that he felt himself stiffen as his eyes traveled from her ankles to her thighs.

"You're trying to kill me, aren't you?" He hadn't meant to ask this question aloud, but now that it was out there he couldn't take it back. Rose looked at him curiously before realization dawned.

"Maybe I should sleep on the couch," she took a retreating step that had him shaking his head in objection.

"No, this is fine," he was lying. He hadn't even been able to masturbate ever since he'd fallen in love with her. There was just something lacking in his sex life now. He wanted Rose and if he couldn't have her, then he would deny himself until he she wanted him as well.

Tentatively she turned off the light, closed her bedroom door, and climbed under the blankets, sidling up to Scorpius. "Thank you for staying," she whispered.

"How could I refuse?" he mused as he wrapped his arms around her. "Bloody hell, you're freezing." He vigorously rubbed her arms with his and Rose's resulting shiver wasn't caused by her body temperature.

Scorpius's entire body froze. Did she just do what he thought she did? He waited, not even daring to breathe, wondering if she would do it again. And she did. Her lips were so soft and delicate against his chest that he thought he'd imagined it the first time.

When her tongue darted out to taste his pectoral muscle, he let out an involuntary moan and flexed his arms around her. In the darkness, without words, she was more confident. Her hands ran up and down his bare torso, enjoying the feeling of his body against hers.

Not wanting to risk scaring her away, he stayed still and let her continue her exploration of his body. He let her push his shoulders until he was flat on his back, with her beside him. She had one leg thrown over his hips and was stroking his face as she kissed his neck.

"That feels amazing," he whispered, his fingers stroking the exposed skin of her thigh. She didn't reply, just kept on doing what she was doing, skimming her lips and tongue all the way to his shoulder then back up to his ear, nipping at it gently. This action caused him to squirm and grip her thigh a little tighter.

Words ran through her mind. Advice. Working up to shagging. When would she have a better opportunity? Bravely, she said in a shaking voice, "Scorpius, I want you to touch me. Please."

His body jerked under hers. "Where?" The word was a moan.

She took his hand in hers and guided it down to cup her sex. Instantly she stopped her ministrations on him, tensed, and closed her eyes shut tightly. Her whole body was trembling with nerves. Firmly, but slowly, Scorpius pressed his fingers against her and to her surprise it felt good.

"Rose, Sweetie, you're quivering. Are you sure you want this?" His voice was stronger now; determined. He refused to do anything that she didn't want him to do.

"No," she said quietly, "I'm not sure I want this. It's your job to make me sure. Damn it, Scorpius, make me want it," in addition to her statement she rotated her hips, pressing herself against his hand and gasping at the friction it caused.

"I have a better idea," he kissed her lips roughly, rolled over on top her, nestled himself between her legs, and ground his length against her.

Rose mewled and shuddered. She was still scared shitless. After all, Scorpius could so easily move aside her shorts and knickers and take her by force. He was stronger than her, her wand was far out of her reach, and he was currently pressing every inch of his masculine form against her feminine one as much as he could.

As his hips moved, grinding their clothed crotches against each other, she found herself moving in rhythm with him. With a shiver of apprehension she realized that they were going through all of the motions of shagging, just with their clothes on.

He moaned into her ear before biting her neck. His lips sucked lightly on her pulse point and she reacted so violently to it, thrashing under him, arching into him, increasing the pressure of his cock against her center, that he sucked harder. Rose gave a sharp cry and she heard herself say, "Fuck, that feels, brilliant. Oh, Scorp, that feels _wonderful_."

Encouraged by this response, he upped the tempo of his thrusts and slid a hand under the Quidditch jersey she was wearing. To his shock and delight he discovered that she wasn't wearing a bra. His hand closed over her breast and his mind barely registered the fact that her breasts were fucking perfect. They fit perfectly into his large hands and they were so bloody soft.

When noises began spilling out of her throat rapidly and her hands dug into his hips, spurring him on, Scorpius knew she was close to her climax. His mouth left her neck and he kissed her deeply, passionately, on the lips, groaning into her mouth as he felt his peak approaching as well.

She tore her mouth away from his in a gasp as she came undone. Her body was raked with tremors as she experienced the most pleasurable thing she'd ever felt in her short seventeen years of life. Her wide blue eyes were so filled with lust that all Scorpius had to do was gaze into them, feeling her orgasm beneath him, and he followed.

Not wanting to collapse on top of her, he supported himself on his forearms, raised slightly above her as he rode out the residual waves of his own pleasure, soaking the front of his boxers. When he came down from his high, he rolled onto his side and reached for his wand. He muttered hasty cleansing spell, drying his boxers as well as her drenched knickers.

"Rose…" he was watching her warily as her unfocused gaze was aimed pointedly upward, away from him. "I'm sorry if that's not what you wanted…I didn't mean to be so aggressive…"

After a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart, Rose turned toward him with a soft smile. "Thank you," she whispered, "that was incredible." She snuggled up to him, kissed his jaw, yawned, and fell asleep.

Shocked by this reaction, Scorpius found himself reveling in this sated cuddly version of Rose. Smugly, a smirk settled onto his lips. She thought that what he had made her feel was _incredible_. It might not be love, but it was enough to send him into blissful oblivion with a smile on his face.

….

"Argghhhh!" Leila screamed as James tackled her, the two of them rolling on the floor in a tangle of limbs. They had been chasing each other around the house, wrestling, attempting to pin each other.

Leila wasn't stupid; she knew that James wasn't even really trying. In reality he was bigger than her, stronger than her, and could have had her at his mercy at any moment he chose to.

Tasting an easy victory as the woman in his arms giggled, James licked the side of her face from her jaw to her hairline. "Do I win?" he asked breathlessly.

"Never!" she cried as she squirmed in his grasp. James locked his arms and legs around her. Finally, with a 'hmph!' she stilled her movements and said with a pout, "Okay, you win."

He grinned at her, "You bet your arse I did," he gave her ass a light slap for emphasis before getting off of her and straightening his clothes. "Are you ready to get married tomorrow?"

"We're already married, Stupid."

"Aren't you just a charming little wifey?" he said sarcastically. "I meant, are you ready to get all dolled up, wear a pretty dress, walk down the aisle, and declare to all and sundry that you are bound to me for the rest of your existence?"

"Bloody hell, you make it sound so serious!" she joked.

"It is serious," he reminded her. "Even though we've already said the vows, tomorrow the Ministry wizard is going to do the official binding and magical incantations and maybe he'll even throw in some voodoo. Perhaps we should have a few headless chickens prepared?"

He was laughing but Leila wasn't. The look on her face was very stern as she sat up from the floor, brushed off her jeans, and looked away from him. "Uh oh," he clucked his tongue, "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

"No, James, of course not," her words weren't very convincing.

"Leila, if something's wrong, please tell me."

Leila's head spun to face him so quickly that her blonde hair hit him in the face. "I chose you."

He tilted his head as he gazed at her. "What?"

"With this new marriage law, purebloods were allowed to choose which muggle-born or half-blood they wanted to marry, and I chose you." Leila kept her eyes locked firmly on his as she waited for his reaction.

….

**A/N: Don't be mad at me! Also, if you guys want to see the dresses I picked out for Leila's wedding dress and her bridesmaid dresses, the links are on my profile page! I will do my best to have the next chapter up as soon as I can! I have a big assignment that I need to work on tomorrow, but I'll try to have the next chapter up before the weekend is over. **


	11. PotterScamander Wedding

Nothing changed in James's expression as her words sank into his mind. His thoughts, however, were running wild. "Please," Leila whispered as she reached out to stroke his face, "say something."

"Why didn't you tell me?" his tone was so neutral and casual that it made her flinch. Shouldn't he be showing some sort of emotion?

"I was afraid," she whispered. "I didn't know how you would take it. I was worried that you didn't really want me and you might have been happier with someone else. I thought that by choosing you I might have stopped you from being with someone you would have preferred." Her eyes were rapidly filling with tears.

"Sometimes, Leila," he pulled away from her touch as he spoke, "you drive me absolutely insane and make me want to pull my bloody hair out!"

"I'm sorry," she said sheepishly as she cast her gaze down to the floor.

"You…and Fred...Blimey, I've been an idiot! He's a pureblood! Is this what you two have been chatting about secretly? You two are supposed to be my best mates, why didn't you tell me about this?" James was pacing, not looking at her just as she wasn't looking at him.

"He wanted me to tell you, but it was my decision to make when I felt the time was right. I wanted you to know before we were bound together. I wanted you to know that while you didn't have any control over this, I did. _I did_." James could hear the sobs in her voice and he spun to face her.

"Do you regret it?" he asked harshly.

"_Yes_," she hissed in an agonized voice as she cried, "I regret taking your choices away from you. I regret forcing myself to be with you against your will. I regret being so damn selfish." She swiped a hand furiously at her cascading tears.

"If you could do it over, would you do the same thing again?"

"No," she sniffed, "I wouldn't."

"What would you change?"

"I would talk to you before writing your bloody name down. I would ask you if you would be okay with that. I would want you to know what I was doing so I didn't feel so fucking guilty for hiding it from you."

"Then I forgive you," he gave a jerk of his head. "Not that you really even need to be forgiven for anything, Lei. I would have chosen you if our roles were reversed. Don't you ever regret your actions, Leila, because you have made me the happiest man on the planet."

Not daring to believe his words, her head snapped up to stare at him in awe. "You're not mad at me? You don't hate me? There isn't anyone else you would have rather had?"

James laughed once without humor as he wrapped his arms around her. "I'm the opposite of mad right now, Sweetheart. I am happy to know that you wanted me so badly that you chose me over any other bloke you could have had. I could never hate you. And you silly bird! I will never want anyone else but you."

They kissed for a few moments, both of them trying to put all of their emotions into that one kiss. For Leila she attempted to convey apologies, love, and promises of honesty in the future. James on the other hand was kissing her with forgiveness, acceptance, love, and…joy?

Before they could get too carried away, James pulled back, looking at her with new eyes. Instead of being unsure of her feelings for him, double-guessing himself, wondering in the dark depths of his mind if she actually preferred his best mate, he was nothing short of jubilant. "Love, if you chose me, then how exactly does that work? Does that mean that every muggle-born or half-blood was chosen by his or her fiancé? What happened if more than one person wanted the same person?"

"We were allowed to write down our top three options. That way, hopefully, we would at least get someone in our top three. You were my first, James. Heather was Fred's second choice, actually, but he seems happy enough with her. I don't know about anyone else."

"Who else did you write down after me?"

"It doesn't matter," she muttered shyly.

"I know it doesn't matter, just like it didn't matter to you how recently I'd slept with someone else. I'm just curious. It's probably going to hurt a bit, I'll admit that, but I'd rather know than sit around letting my imagination run wild," he twined his fingers into her blonde locks as he spoke.

"My second choice was Gage Perkins." Her eyes were shut tightly at this confession.

"What?" hissed James. "I _hate _him, Lei, and you know it! That bloody prick! Why the fucking hell would you want to marry that tosser?" Despite his harsh words, his arms stayed around her, holding her close to him.

"That's why I chose him second. I've never had a problem with him, personally, and I thought if I couldn't have you, I should pick someone you hated so hopefully you wouldn't come around me much. It would have hurt me too badly to see you and be friends with you if I knew there was no chance I could ever be with you. I knew if I married Gage you would hardly come around."

"As twisted as that kind of thinking is, I kind of admire it. You're sometimes a bit too smart for your own good. Now then, who was your third choice?"

"It really doesn't matter, can't we just go to bed? I want you so bad I can't stand it. Please let me wrap my lips around your cock, Love, I promise that you will-"

"Stop trying to change the subject!" he growled as he reached a hand into his pants to adjust the growing bulge in his trousers. "It can't possibly worse than _Perkins_ for fuck's sake, so let's hear it!"

"I'd really rather not-"

"I swear to Godric, Lei, if you don't tell me I'll be even more angry than at whatever your answer is!"

"Albus! Merlin! Are you happy now, you obnoxious git? _Albus _was my third choice."

Staggered, James let go of her and took a step back, placing his hand over his heart as if she'd pierced him there. "My brother? What...why?"

"Because I know Al. I trust him and he's always treated me with the utmost of respect. I couldn't think of anyone else. Most of the blokes who I am close to aside from you and Al are either taken or purebloods. I couldn't have requested one of the Longbottoms or Fred. I thought of Louis, but he's been dating Verity for years now and I was afraid of taking him from her. Albus was the only logical choice. It doesn't matter anyway," she hurriedly tacked on at the end, "I'm with you and that's all that counts."

James said with wide eyes, "To think, Albus could be standing where I am now, shagging you, getting ready to marry you tomorrow. I knew that I could have lost you to some other wizard with this law, but to hear that it came close to being my brother…I'm not going to lie, it hurts."

Without saying anything, she went to him and kissed him. She was again trying to put her emotions into it and show him just how thankful she was that Albus wasn't standing in his place. James reacted to the kiss instinctively and knew that the wound to his pride was dismal in comparison to the pain he would be experiencing if he didn't have her. Cherishing what he had instead of worrying about what could have been seemed like the smart choice here.

"I think that I will take you up on that offer of having those lovely red lips wrapped around my hard dick now, Mrs. Potter."

With a watery smile, Leila took his hands and led him toward their bedroom.

…

Scorpius was woken up the morning of James and Leila's wedding to an angry voice growling close to his ear, "Get the _fuck _out!" He couldn't believe this. After last night, after everything she said and did, Rose was kicking him out?

No, scratch that, actually he _could _believe this. This was just so bloody perfect! Just when he thought they were making progress, she was pulling shite like this. But then, why was she clinging to him so tightly if she wanted him to leave? Her leg was still slung around his hips and she was cuddled onto his chest, clutching him.

He lazily opened one eye to look at her. Her head was lying on his chest, her amazingly soft deep red hair keeping his torso warm. The blanket was down low enough to reveal his bare chest but up high enough that it was touching her chin, covering her body completely. Waking up slowly he pried open his other eye and saw two figures standing ominously in the doorway of her bedroom.

Blinking a few times to clear his vision, he knew that this must have been who Rose was speaking to. Albus Potter and Louis Weasley were looking at the two of them in the bed as if they couldn't believe their eyes. Scorpius grinned widely as he realized how this must look to them. Feeling a surge of smugness he tugged purposefully at the blanket, as if making sure that it was covering her, because for all they knew, Scorpius and Rose could both be entirely naked.

"Morning, lads," said Scorpius jovially as he snuggled deeper into the mattress. "Fancy closing that door and giving us a bit of privacy?"

"You…and…but…" Albus mumbled.

"I said," repeated Rose threateningly, "get the _fuck_ out." She wasn't looking at them. Her eyes were still closed and she snuggled against Scorpius.

"We just wanted to let you know that you might want to start getting ready for the wedding. It's in a few hours," Louis was backing away as he spoke, tugging Al by the arm along with him. After saying what he came to say, he closed the door with a light _snick._

"That was embarrassing," she said with a soft laugh as she finally opened her eyes and smiled up at Scorpius. He chuckled, tucked his fingers under her chin and tilted her face up so he could kiss her.

The brief kiss stirred things in him that he didn't have time to think about right then. Love and lust being the main two. "Thanks for keeping me warm all night," he teased as he gestured to the way she was wrapped around him.

"Yes, well, it's a small bed," she defended as she untangled her limbs from his and got up to stretch. While facing away from him she said, "Thank you for last night. You were very sweet and patient. I appreciate that."

Not knowing how to reply to that, Scorpius slid out of the bed, snuck up behind her, wrapped his arms around her waist, and kissed her cheek. "How about you go start getting ready to be a bridesmaid in your cousin's wedding and I Apparate back to the manor so I can make myself presentable as well?"

Rose nodded and in the next moment Scorpius was gone. Not sure that she was ready to face what was waiting for her in the sitting room, she took her time getting her things together before exiting her bedroom.

Louis and Albus were on the couch, both of them in casual trousers and t-shirts. Obviously they hadn't gotten ready for the wedding yet. Hoping fiercely that they wouldn't bring up the incident this morning, she said casually, "I can't believe I slept in so late! We're supposed to be at the Burrow in two hours!"

"It's to be expected when you spend your night participating in rigorous exercise," Louis said this with a straight face but Albus, who was in the middle of sipping some coffee, spluttered and almost choked before he managed to clear his throat.

Flushing crimson, Rose ignored Louis as she strode into the lavatory with her head held high. As she showered her mind raced. Honestly she hadn't felt this good in ages. So refreshed and bubbly. But had they moved too quickly? Should she have told him to take a step back? They didn't exactly have a lot of time to go slowly, but surely there were steps between snogging and…and what they did the previous night!

Rose Weasley was in unfamiliar territory and she hated it. Everything she was experiencing with Scorpius was new to her for the most part. Normally she was so confident. But how could she possibly exhibit confidence when she felt so self-conscious and unsure of herself all the time?

…

Scorpius Malfoy was whistling as he skipped down the stairs from his bedroom. His parents were waiting for him in the foyer as they had also been invited to the Potter/Scamander wedding and not only via _The Daily Prophet_ but they had also received an actual formal invitation.

"Did you have a nice night, Son?" asked Draco with raised eyebrows as Scorpius smirked.

"Yes, actually, I did. I'm assuming by that knowing look you have that you know I didn't sleep here last night," Scorpius made a 'tsk' sound as he spoke. "In answer to your unspoken question; yes, I stayed with Rose last night."

"I don't blame you. You should get it while you can, because I assure you, as soon as you're married they suddenly have headaches every night and no amount of pepper-up potions will cure it – ow!" Astoria elbowed Draco in the ribs as he finished giving his fatherly advice.

"Nothing like that happened, Dad. Rose shares a flat with her cousin, Albus Potter, and Albus has been spending his nights with Norah at her flat. Rose dislikes sleeping in an empty flat so I stayed to keep her company."

"I'm sure your intentions were nothing but noble," Draco drawled sarcastically.

Astoria's fingers were fixing her husband's tie, "That's enough, you two. Let's not be late. Scorpius? Do you know if we're supposed to floo or Apparate there? Did the invitation specify how they wanted guests to arrive?"

"I'm not flooing, my robes will be coated in ashes," Draco protested.

"We'll Apparate then. Draco, Scorpius, take hold of me and I'll do it. Now Scorpius, don't let go of my arm or you could be splin-"

"I _know_, Mum."

"Right then, let's be off!"

…

The Potter/Scamander wedding was crawling with the press. As the Malfoy family made their way through the queue at the edges of the Burrow's protective enchantments they were bombarded with questions. _Why were you invited? Did you pay to be here? Are you crashing the wedding? Who is Scorpius marrying? _

It was Harry Potter who came to their rescue which had Draco gritting his teeth. "Excuse me," Harry said with a broad smile. Years in the spotlight had taught him exactly how to give the press what they wanted; him. "The Malfoys are very good friends of the family. Scorpius is marrying one of my niece's and his cousin, Teddy Lupin, is my godson. Let them through."

The press immediately stepped back and cameras flashed wildly as they entered. The invitations they carried allowed them to pass through the enchantments while the press was held at bay. "Thanks, Potter," Draco whispered with just a slight edge.

Harry smiled and clapped him on the back, "Happy to be of service, Malfoy. Although now they're going to be dying to discover who Scorpius is betrothed to."

"They've been sneaking around the manor for months," commented Astoria scathingly.

"Here we are, my nephew Hugo will show you to your seats," Harry gestured and Hugo came running up. Opposite of his sister, Hugo had acquired their mother's quiet and shy demeanor. His hair was dark red, like Rose's, but straight. His eyes were brown like his mother's and his facial features favored those of the Weasley family. Even his build was tall and thin like his father's.

"Scorpius," Hugo held out his hand and Scorpius took it firmly. Hugo pulled Scorpius in closer so he could whisper with menace, "Al told me about what he walked in on this morning. If you hurt her, I'll kill you."

When he leaned back and released Scorpius's hand he was smiling kindly. Scorpius barely suppressed a laugh at this. With a firm nod at his soon-to-be brother-in-law, Scorpius hurriedly followed Hugo to their seats.

"Aunt Andromeda," Draco said happily to the woman on his left. "How are you?"

"Doing quite well, Draco. Will your parents be here?" the older woman favored his late Aunt Bellatrix so much that it made his gut twist to look at her. But there was something in her eyes that assured Draco Andromeda was nothing like either or her sisters.

"No, they weren't invited."

"I didn't think they would be but I wasn't sure…" Scorpius stopped listening to the conversation at that. Instead he looked around. Most of the guests in attendance were people he knew.

Looking highly uncomfortable and not entirely sure how they got there was a family of what were obviously muggles. The men wore suits and they were glancing around in awe at the tent above them which was suspended by magic and the floating candles. Not to mention the instruments that were playing themselves off to the side.

The candles all flickered at once and everyone quickly sat down as the wedding was about to begin. It seemed that Astoria had been correct in her assumption that they were almost late for the ceremony. At the Ministry official's signal they all stood and faced toward the end of the aisle. Traditional wedding music began to play and James Potter stood beside the Ministry official practically bouncing in excitement.

Roxanne was the first Bridesmaid to appear. She strutted up the aisle with her hand tucked into the crook of her brother's elbow. Smiling grandly at the guests as they walked in time with the slow music and looked at perfect ease to be in front of so many people.

They took their places up front and Scorpius turned his attention to the next couple. Rose. For several seconds he didn't breathe. She looked stunning. Her hair was all up piled on top of her head elegantly and she had obviously straightened it again. The dress, as she guessed, was short on her. It almost reached her mid-thigh but not quite.

She had been partnered with Teddy Lupin. He looked striking in his black dress robes. His hair was spikey, short, and the exact same shade as Rose's yellow dress. He was not blood related to Rose and Scorpius felt an odd surge of jealousy at seeing how comfortable Rose obviously was with him.

Rose gave the people watching a small smile while Teddy beamed at everyone, even sending a wink to his grandmother. When Rose saw Scorpius the lightest touch of red lit up her cheeks and it only made her look even prettier.

As Teddy and Rose passed where he was standing, Scorpius couldn't help but stare at her arse. The frilly loose bottom of her dress drew the eye to her perfect backside. Without purposefully bringing the memory to mind, he found himself remembering how it felt to hold that arse tightly while grinding his erection into her.

Those heels! The shoes on her feet were tall stilettos that made her already long legs look even longer. Bloody hell! She looked like she just stepped off the pages of some modeling magazine! If she hadn't been wearing a dress she could have been from the pages of a dirty magazine.

"Witches prefer when your eyes are on their faces, not their other lovely assets," whispered Draco with a chuckle. Scorpius cleared his throat and slid his eyes up to her face as she turned to face her friends and family.

Albus and Lily Potter were the maid of honor and best man. They owned the room in a way the other couples hadn't. There were only a few select members of the press off to the sides taking pictures of the wedding for the papers and they were going wild.

Lily blew them a kiss while Al gave them a shy wave. Lily had a girlish presence that made everyone love her. Al was humble and shy, like a miniature Harry. The press ate them up.

Finally, Leila appeared. She was a vision. If Scorpius hadn't been so biased, he would have admitted that Leila was the most gorgeous girl in the place. But he couldn't think anyone was beautiful with Rose around. Leila's long thick blonde hair was pulled back and fell down her back in tight ringlets. Her veil was longer, trailing down to the ground, fanning out behind her as she walked. Normally girls wore a small tiara or hair clips with pearls or diamonds, but Leila's headpiece was a halo of white flowers.

Her father, who Scorpius had never seen before, was walking with her, escorting her up to her waiting groom. James looked like the happiest man alive as Leila's father placed her hand into James's and took his seat beside Luna.

Scorpius wasn't listening to the rest of the ceremony. His eyes kept wandering to Rose; watching her watch the wedding. He jolted in his seat when Leila and James kissed; there was a sound like a canon blast, sparkles and confetti rained down on everyone, and the instruments struck up a lively tune.

James spun Leila around and dipped her for their kiss. Leila threw her arms around her husband, her bouquet of flowers obviously not her main concern when she crushed them against James's back. When he pulled her back upright, she was smiling and her lipstick was slightly smeared.

….

James couldn't believe how wonderful he felt. Was this how everyone felt when they married the person they loved? The reception followed flawlessly. Leila stayed in her exuberant gown and the chairs were transfigured into tables with dragon centerpieces.

It was beautiful, showy, and magical. Just like they wanted it to be. So he didn't have a hippogriff to ride off on and there was no way his mother was going to let him get away with a few of his more outrageous plans, that was okay. Leila was by his side and that was all that mattered to him.

"Merlin, Circe, and Morgana! You're muggles!" Leila screeched as she greeted all of her guests and finally came to James's great-aunt Petunia, great-uncle Vernon, cousin Dudley, Dudley's wife Nancy, and their two children, Norman and Diana.

"Erm, yes," said Dudley in an almost embarrassed way.

"James said you would be here, but I'm so excited to finally meet you! I simply must get a picture with you. James, find a camera! Muggles! At my wedding! _Can you believe it?_" her excitement was amusing and baffling to her husband as he went to locate a camera.

"Congratulations," said Petunia stiffly.

Leila pulled the older woman to her hard, hugging her like they were best friends, "Thank you! Thank you for being here supporting James today. So you really can't do any magic at all? That's so fascinating! I've never actually met any muggles before. I mean, I've seen them of course, but I've never been introduced to them. My whole family are wizards, you see."

"Lovely," said Vernon, sounding as if this was anything but lovely.

"Here," Leila shoved her wand into Dudley's hand. "Go on, give it a wave. Yes, just like that, don't be afraid now, just give it a purposeful flick…" she illustrated the movement and Dudley copied it.

"Nothing happened," he said bluntly.

"Nothing at all!" Leila agreed, sounding delighted, "that's extraordinary! No magic at all. I am so honored to have you here."

The Dursley's looked to Harry with pleading eyes and with a hearty laugh he intervened. "Excuse them, Leila, they're not exactly comfortable around magic."

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't realize. Please, help yourselves to some champagne and food while I find where James has disappeared to." She took her wand back from Dudley, shoving it down her cleavage into the bodice of her wedding dress before leaving them with Harry.

"May I have this dance?"

Leila spun around to find Scorpius Malfoy with his hand extended, bowing slightly, waiting for her reply. "Of course," she slid her gloved hand into his and let him guide her out onto the dance floor. "So you and Rose next."

He chuckled, "Molly and William are next, actually. Their wedding is tomorrow. Or have you been so busy shagging James that you barely remembered your own wedding let alone his cousin's?"

Leila smirked, "Cheeky, aren't you? No wonder Rose likes you so much."

He was so shocked by her words that for a moment he forgot to keep dancing until Leila gave him a gentle shove and he started moving his feet again. "Did she say something to you?"

"No, but she didn't have to. I can tell. Rose and I might not be very close, but Roxanne and I are the closest thing she has to girlfriends. It's written all over her face when she talks about you. We got the invitation to your wedding this morning by the way."

"Yes, Rose got those out right away," he jumped onto this topic change. He didn't want to discuss Rose and any possible feelings she might have with a girl who was practically a stranger to him.

"I'm in her wedding, too, you know. She asked all of us today. Norah, Lily, Roxanne, Dominique, Lucy, and me. We're going shopping for dresses on Monday. Don't worry, I'll make sure we get her some appropriate wedding night attire as well. Where do you plan on taking her for your honeymoon?"

His head spinning with all of this, he somehow managed to reply, "It's, um, actually a surprise. Her parents said they were taking care of it and wouldn't tell me a thing."

"Oh that sounds so lovely. James and I aren't actually going on a honeymoon. We just bought a house and we know that most of the next month will be spent between the sheets if you know what I mean, so why waste money going somewhere when we'll barely get out of the hotel room?" She was very blunt about their sexual life and a part of Scorpius envied this. He wondered if Rose would ever, could ever, be this blasé about their sex life. Somehow he just couldn't see it. Would she always be so shy in bed?

The song ended and Scorpius politely kissed the back of her clothed knuckles as he stepped away from her. "Thank you for the lovely dance, Mrs. Potter."

"Thanks for coming here today, Scorpius. Go find Rose and take her for a spin on the dance floor. After all, isn't she your date tonight?"

….

When Scorpius found Rose he almost wished he hadn't. She was sitting at a table with Vincent and Austin Longbottom. Scorpius came up behind her stiffly and placed a hand on her shoulder possessively. "Longbottoms," he drawled.

"Malfoy," Austin said with strained politeness.

"Scorpius," said Vincent as he stood to shake his hand. "How have you been? I can't believe you are marrying Rose! We're going to be cousins-in-law someday, isn't that crazy?"

"Er, I'm sorry, what?" Scorpius had been too busy glaring at the way Austin was looking at Rose.

"I'm with Lily, but you knew that of course."

"Oh, right, yeah, Rose told me about the Ministry giving you guys a break. That's excellent, mate," his reply was sincere but his eyes were still glued to the other Longbottom as Austin reached over to stroke the back of Rose's hand.

Rose looked up at Austin with wide eyes. Didn't he realize what it looked like to people when he did that? Was he purposefully trying to make a move on her with her fiancé standing right there? When their eyes met something in her memory stirred.

Austin. Moonlight. Walking through muggle London. Lips. Snogging. Rose jerked her hand out from under his and reached up to rub her right temple. Had she really cheated on Scorpius? Did he know about this?

By the look on his face he did. Scorpius looked like he was about to lunge across the table at Austin and throttle him. "Rose, honey, are you feeling okay, you look a bit flushed?" Austin's concern was real and she knew it but at the same time she didn't appreciate it.

Even if she had been pissed Austin hadn't been. Had he really kissed her, being sober, knowing they were both going to marry other people? Words came back to her. _"…come home with me…"_

She was on her feet in an instant, leaning her back into Scorpius's chest as he ran his hands up and down her bare arms. "Cold, love?" he asked affectionately as he nuzzled his face into the crook of her neck. Clearly he was sending Austin a warning.

"Yes, I am. Will you accompany me inside to get a sweater?" she asked as her eyes flickered from Austin to the man whose arms she was in.

"Of course," Scorpius gently hooked his fingers around her elbow and led her toward the Burrow.

"Please, Scorpius, be honest with me," she pleaded when they were out of earshot of everyone else. "The night that I showed up at your house drunk…did I say anything…did Austin…um?"

Scorpius sighed and rubbed his eyes. "You told me that he kissed you," his voice was low and pained, "and that he offered to take you home with him for a shag."

"Did I…go?"

"No! Bloody hell! What, did you think he took you back to his flat, shagged you, and then brought you to me? No, Rose, you told him no and made him bring you home." It didn't go unnoticed by either of them that Scorpius had referred to Malfoy Manor as Rose's home.

"Thank God," she exhaled shakily. "While we were talking, a few things came back to me. I remembered him saying to me that he wanted me to go home with him. I was worried. Merlin, I'm so sorry, Scorpius. Shit, how do you still want me around you?"

"I love you."

She started when he said this and led him upstairs to a bedroom where she had obviously gotten ready that afternoon. She had a green sweater on a bed that she pulled on. "I don't understand how you can still want me after I cheated on you."

"I don't blame you, Rose. At one point in your life you loved Austin. He came onto you, you went with it, but in the end you didn't go home with him."

"Did I happen to tell you why I didn't?"

"You said that you didn't go home with him because I tasted better. I imagine that to mean that Longbottom doesn't live up to his reputation in the snogging department."

"Honestly I don't remember enough to confirm that, but I doubt there's a bloke alive who can snog better than you."

Scorpius and Rose were equally shocked to hear those words come from her mouth. "Exactly how many glasses of champagne have you had tonight? If this is what alcohol does to you then please remind me to only serve Ogden's at our wedding."

Rose playfully punched his shoulder before wrapping her arms around his middle and burying her face into his chest. "I'm so sorry I did that to you, Scorpius. You've no idea how bad I feel."

He heard a soft hiccup and reached down to stroke her cheek. "Are you crying? Oh, Rose, it's not that big of a deal. So you snogged a bloke. I'll live. You're marrying me in one week. Let Longbottom suck on that!"

Rose clucked her tongue as she pulled back out of his embrace and wiped at her wet eyes. "You're such a tosser."

"Aw, come on, let's go make Longbottom green with envy."

Giving him an evil grin that looked out of place on Rose's angelic face she silently agreed. Austin had no right to take advantage of her intoxicated state. He had no right to request that she cheat on Scorpius and she was definitely going to make him regret it.

…

"Looks like Rose might actually fancy Scorpius now," Norah was being swept around the dance floor in Al's arms when she glanced over to see Scorpius and Rose doing a few raunchy dance moves.

Albus tensed. "Louis and I kind of caught them in bed together this morning."

"What? You mean like, in bed like how we are in bed, or in bed like how James and Leila are in bed?"

"Nice analogy," said Albus sarcastically, "but I'm not sure. It looked like how James and Leila are but I really don't know."

"It's a good thing, Al," Norah rested her head on his chest and inhaled his scent. Any couples that the press had previously not known about were certainly public now. They had already taken what seemed like thousands or pictures of Norah as she had been in Al's arms the entire night.

Rose and Scorpius, however, were now the stars of the show. If James and Leila were upset by this they didn't show it but it was apparent that the press were salivating to get closer to the racy couple as they grinded together to the music.

Albus purposefully led Norah over in that direction. When he was close enough to speak with them, he said quietly, "This is supposed to be a classy event. Stop shagging on the dance floor."

"I'll dance however I want," Rose spun around so her back was to Scorpius's chest and slid down the length of his body, almost showing off her knickers.

"Bloody hell, Rose, that guy with the camera almost caught a glimpse of your underwear!" Albus growled.

"No he didn't," she argued lightly.

"Yes, he did," Albus insisted.

"No, he didn't, because I'm not wearing any. What he almost got a picture of was my arse."

"What's gotten into her?" Norah asked Scorpius, wondering if perhaps Rose was really this drunk.

"Revenge," Scorpius was trying, and failing, not to laugh. "She just remembered about the kiss she shared with Austin Longbottom and she wants to shove in his face what he's missing."

"One night of sex and my cousin turns into a slag," Al gasped in disbelief, "What did you _do _to her, Malfoy?"

"We didn't shag!" Rose hissed, spinning around and pressing her front firmly against Scorpius's front.

"What? I thought for sure with the way you two were wrapped around each other under the covers…"

"Well you're wrong. My virginity remains intact, Al, no worries."

"If you're not careful you're going to lose it on the dance floor," Fred suddenly appeared with Heather. "Every bloke here who isn't related to you is panting and waiting for you to be away from Scorpius so they can have the chance to steal you away."

"Let them try," said Rose unconcernedly.

"Seriously, Rose? This is all it took? You would barely touch Scorpy-boy before and now that you're angry at Austin Longbottom you're willing to go to extremes to get back at him?" Fred looked torn between being impressed and terrified.

"He deserves to be taught a harsh lesson in reality, Fred. I am marrying Scorpius and if he thinks he can just waltz up to me, snog me, and take me home with him, he has another thing coming!"

"Just don't let James see this wanton display of sexuality. Or Uncle Ron for that matter. They would both have heart attacks."

"Nah, James would probably be proud of me and Dad would-"

"-Pull out his wand and _Avada _your fiancé?" Ron Weasley came from nowhere and was pushing his way between the grinding couple.

"Dad!" she squeaked.

"Mr. Weasley," Scorpius acknowledged respectfully.

"Shove it up your arse, Malfoy! What the hell do you think you are doing? We are at a wedding, not a brothel! For Merlin's sake, Rosie, go put some trousers on! And you had better keep your slimy Slytherin hands off of my little girl!"

"Dad! I am seventeen! We're getting married in a week!"

"That doesn't mean he can fondle you in the middle of a wedding reception in front of hundreds of guests! Have you no decency?"

"I'm afraid that I really must agree with the Weasel on this one."

"Dad," groaned Scorpius.

"Keep it in your pants for another week, Son," Draco scolded.

Ron's ears burned red. "Keep it in your pants forever, Malfoy, or I'll remove it permanently!"

"They're getting married, Weasley! Do you expect them to never have sex?" Draco asked coolly.

"Not if he wants to live past next weekend!"

"Come on," whispered Scorpius, "Let's get out of here." Rose eagerly agreed.

…..

**A/N: Well, how was James's reaction to Leila? I like how James and Leila almost always end up shagging at the end of their scenes. It fits them so well I think. How was Rose's reaction to her night with Scorpius? Granted she hasn't really had a chance to fully process it yet as her day was filled with family things. Just one week until Rose and Scorpius's wedding! As always, let me know what you think of this chapter!**

**Yours,**

**MofDA**


	12. Scars and Scares

**A/N: This chapter is shorter than usual. It's SORT OF a filler chapter. There are important parts but there is some fluff, too. Most characters in this chapter admit to something that scares them and/or something that has scarred them. I hope you all enjoy it! Coming up in the next chapter: Albus and Norah, wedding dress shopping, and Leila at work.**

**Also, apparently I can't resist having a James/Leila scene that ends with sexy times for them. That's just how I see them as a couple; always wanting each other. **

…**.**

"I have to admit that I'm a little disappointed," sighed Rose as she slipped off her heels and rubbed her sore ankles. "I didn't even have one glass of champagne. I can't blame my racy dance moves on intoxication."

Scorpius gave her a devilish grin, "You can always blame it on me. Tell everyone that I seduced you and you just couldn't help yourself."

They were now at Rose's flat, in her sitting room, both of them lounging on her couch. "I'm never wearing heels again," she moaned.

"Sling them up here," he patted his lap and Rose didn't hesitate to drop her feet onto his thighs and he began massaging her from the tips of her toes all the way up to her knees.

"Can we just skip Molly's wedding?" she grumbled as she let her head drop back onto the arm of the sofa. "My feet hurt, my head is killing me from having all of this hair piled on top of it all evening, and I really don't fancy embarrassing myself on the dance floor again."

"Trust me, you did not embarrass yourself at all. Every girl was envious and every guy was drooling."

"That's the problem. It was James and Leila's wedding. I shouldn't have drawn attention like that."

"I hardly think they minded. As a matter of fact, I didn't even see them after we came back from inside the house. They were probably shagging under one of the tables."

A loud laugh escaped Rose at the mental image of Leila tossing her bouquet aside to scramble under a table with that long train trailing out. "I wouldn't put it past them," she agreed.

"Do you think that you and…." He trailed off, not wanting to finish his question in fear of her answer or her reaction to him asking.

"What is it?" her wide blue eyes were so innocent that it made him feel ashamed for just a moment about what he was about to ask.

"Just forget it; never mind." He was suddenly exceptionally interested in paying adequate attention to his ministrations on her feet.

"Were you about to ask if you and I would ever do such a thing?" There was a slightly teasing tone in her voice and Scorpius shrugged. "I honestly don't know the answer to that question." She was staring right at him while he was avoiding her gaze. "I would like to hope so."

His head snapped up at that. "But…I…what?"

"Scorpius, I might be a bit naïve but I'm not a complete idiot. I want this marriage to work and I know that physical intimacy is a really important aspect of a relationship."

"But you're afraid of sex," he said unnecessarily.

"I'll get over it," he might have believed her if she hadn't squeaked on the last word and gained a terrified expression at the prospect.

"I'm not going to pressure you into anything. Come on, let's get your exhausted arse to bed." He gripped her behind the knees and tugged her body down until he could wrap one arm around her waist while keeping the other under her knees.

He carried her to the bedroom while she pulled pins out of her hair, letting the straight strands fall down past her shoulders. She rubbed her scalp with a sigh. "Would you like a potion to take care of the headache?" he offered as he set her on the bed.

"No, it's not that bad. I'll live," she raked her hands through her hair a few times to make sure she hadn't missed any pins.

"Would you like me to…um…stay tonight?"

"I don't see any reason why not. Will you throw me that Quidditch jersey on the back of my desk chair? I don't want to move from this bed," she fell back onto her pillows.

"Of course," he tossed her the Quidditch jersey she asked for and the pink shorts she'd worn the night before. "I won't look," he promised and dutifully turned away from her.

He heard the rustling of fabric, the creak of bedsprings, and finally her soft voice, "Alright, I'm decent."

Scorpius robotically removed his clothing and climbed into bed with her once he was wearing nothing but his boxers. "Do you want to…" he brushed her hair back and kissed her neck.

"Not tonight," she sighed. Before he could even reply she had fallen asleep.

…

"I said nooooo," Rose groaned as she woke up to Scorpius kissing a line from her ear to her throat and back again.

He gave a low throaty chuckle. "I'm not trying to seduce you at the moment, just wake you up. Molly's wedding is today."

"I know what you're doing. And I said no. I don't want to go to another wedding…"

"But it's your cousin's. We have to go," not being able to argue with that logic, she dragged herself up into a sitting position and ruffled her hair.

"Well, apparently the straightening charms I put on it wore off. Look at this mess, I won't be able to do a thing with it."

"I like it this way," Scorpius complimented.

"Thank Merlin I'm not a bridesmaid in Molly's wedding! We might be cousins but we've never been very close. She's four years older than me and she was in Ravenclaw so we didn't see a lot of each other."

"There was a Weasley in a house other than Gryffindor?" Scorpius mocked playfully.

"Oh yes," Rose said very seriously. "Victoire and Hugo are Ravenclaws, too. Lucy was a Hufflepuff, and Louis was a Slytherin."

"And which of your cousins were brave enough to be placed in the noble house of lions, hmm?"

"James, Al, Lily, Dom, Roxy, Fred, and myself," she rattled off quickly.

"Sometimes, you go into this 'fact repeating' mode and it's rather adorable," he murmured to her as he nuzzled his face into her hair.

"Go back to your bloody castle and get ready for the wedding."

Scorpius laughed. "Malfoy manor isn't really a castle."

Rose scoffed at him as she threw the blanket off of herself and sauntered out of the room. Scorpius followed, wondering if she was mad at him for baiting her that way. When they reached the kitchen, however, they were both distracted by _The Daily Prophet_ which the owl had delivered that morning and was lying open on the table.

_**Weasley/Malfoy Wedding on the Horizon? **_

_For the past few weeks the public has been anxious to know who all of the children of our favorite war heroes are marrying. Last night at the Potter/Scamander wedding several of these couples were revealed. However, none were as shocking as that of Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy. _

_Harry Potter himself was quoted saying that Malfoy was marrying one of his nieces. Although at the time he did not specify which niece, it became obvious when Scorpius took Rose for a turn on the dance floor (pictures on page 5). Some of those in the wizard community are shocked and appalled by this union. However there are those among us who have hope that with this marriage any old animosity between both sides of the war can be forgotten. _

_Both families have refused to discuss this any further with the press and the Ministry will not reveal why they chose these two to be together. From what reporters saw at the wedding it can only be determined that both Rose and Scorpius are happy with their impending union. However there are still those among the wizarding community who have doubts and concerns. Did the Malfoy family pay the Ministry for their son to marry Rose? How do the Weasley's feel about this? Will something as trivial as a marriage be enough to restore the Malfoy family to their former prestige in the wizarding community? Only time will tell._

_Joy Miggins_

"That cow!" Rose screeched as she started unintentionally shredding the paper in her hands in an attempt to reach page 5. "Oh Godric."

The paper dropped from her hands and Scorpius snatched it up. There were several pictures of him and Rose. The first three were of the two of them dancing. In each of these they were grinding against each other in a way that had Rose currently burying her face into her hands while a blush crept up her neck. The next few were random shots of the two of them. In one they were standing beside a table talking to the Longbottom brothers. In another he was whispering something in her ear and she would turn toward him and smile.

The rest of the newspaper was filled mostly with the Potter/Scamander wedding. There was an article that was three pages long that talked about everything from who the guest list included to what designer Leila bought her dress from. There were pages of pictures of the wedding, too. Scorpius smiled fondly at a picture of Al and Norah as they danced in a manner that was much more appropriate than the lustful grinding he and Rose had done.

"We knew they would find out eventually," Scorpius said consolingly.

"Yes, but blimey are those pictures embarrassing. I'm surprised my father isn't pounding on the door right now in an attempt to get in here and strangle me."

"You could always hide out at the manor for a few days if you want."

"No thanks. I've been in the spotlight before. The easiest thing to do is ignore all of the attention and act like it doesn't faze you."

He scowled as if he disliked her answer. "But it _does_ faze you. You hate the press and you hate them being in your business. If you'd like I could easily pay them off, that's what my father does and most of the time it works."

She gave him a look that was torn between amusement and disbelief. "You would pay them to leave me alone just because they annoy me? Merlin are you that rich or do you just fancy me that much?"

"Both."

Feeling awkward by his blunt response, Rose got up to make coffee. "Would you like some? I have cream and sugar if you'd like."

"Sure, a cup of coffee sounds pretty good this morning, but I like mine black."

"Would you happen to remember what time Molly's wedding is?"

"The invitation says 5 o'clock this evening."

"You received an invitation?" Rose paused what she was doing to look at him curiously.

"No," Scorpius chuckled, "but you and Albus did. It's stuck right there on your weird metal muggle contraption…"

"That's called a refrigerator, Scorpius, and Merlin am I an idiot," she slapped a hand over her forehead as she realized that Albus had in fact put the invitation to Molly's wedding on the refrigerator, held there by a non-permanent sticking charm as Albus claimed to not understand how magnets worked.

"It's alright, you've had a lot on your mind lately."

Before Rose could reply, they both heard the front door creak open and Albus, Hugo, and Louis came striding in. Rose, still in the oversized Quidditch shirt and short pink shorts, blushed furiously. Scorpius was similarly disheveled, clad only in a pair of sweatpants which he barely had time to Transfigure as they were previously a pair of boxers.

All three boys stopped in the doorway of the kitchen with raised eyebrows and it was Louis who said, "We were just coming by to see if you'd read the article in the newspaper yet, but from the claw marks on the front page I'd say you have," he motioned to where _The Daily Prophet _lay on the kitchen table.

"Yes, she saw it first thing, unfortunately. Now she's in quite a foul mood. I wouldn't antagonize her today if I were you," Scorpius was clearly warning them not to comment on the fact that he'd spent the night with her; again.

"So…what? Are you two actually a couple now or are you just shagging for the fun of it?" Scoffed Hugo, lacking tact just the way his father had at his age.

"Hugo!" Rose screeched. "For the last bloody time, Scorpius and I are _not_ shagging!"

"Tough luck, mate," said Albus as he clapped Scorpius on the shoulder and then reached around him for a coffee mug.

"Don't be a hypocrite, Al. We all know the only one in this room who is getting laid is Lou," Rose said with as much dignity as she could muster as the boys discussed her sex life.

"I can't argue with that," said Louis with a smirk.

In a hurry to change the subject, Hugo said, "You're lucky Dad isn't over here yet. It was a good thing Mum broke up his argument with Mr. Malfoy yesterday. Granted, I don't think it would have gotten out of hand but they were starting to raise their voices."

"Oh Godric, were they still going on about Scorpius and I having sex?"

"It started that way but then quickly went to how the hell the Ministry paired the two of you up. Dad accused Mr. Malfoy of paying the Ministry and Mr. Malfoy said that Dad was just jealous because he was too poor to the pay the Ministry enough gold to get you a different bloke…"

"My dad said that?" asked Scorpius angrily.

"They were just baiting each other," said Al with a shrug. "Trust me, I've seen the two of them argue a lot and I think they just enjoy getting a rise out of each other. Neither of them meant it and by the end of the night they were drunkenly singing Odo the Hero at a table with their arms around each other's shoulders."

"No!" Rose giggled. "Blimey, I wish I would've stayed longer at the reception just to witness that!"

"The best part was when Mr. Malfoy got ahold of a megaphone and told the whole crowd that he was proud to have his son marry a Weasley," Louis reminisced.

Scorpius groaned but it was more with amusement than embarrassment. "That sounds like my dad."

After everyone had a cup of coffee, Scorpius, Louis, and Hugo went home, leaving Albus and Rose to get ready for the wedding in their flat. "You are Scorpius seem like you're doing a lot better. I'm really proud of you, Rose."

She blushed furiously and muttered a quiet 'thanks.' "What is it?" Al asked as he searched his dresser for his blue tie. "You look guilty about something."

"The reason that we seem to be doing so well is that I'm…I'm not thinking about it." Rose said in a rush.

"What?" Albus looked up at her with a frown.

"Scorpius and I are friends now. I really feel like we are. I can talk with him about things and we make jokes. I think that I might fancy him a bit, but whenever I start thinking about the wedding, or the wedding night, or being married to him _forever_ I get really scared and start panicking."

"Merlin's bouncing balls," Al growled as he slammed the dresser drawer closed. "You need to stop being such a baby about this. We are all facing up to our responsibilities here except you! Do you think I'm just jumping for joy at the prospect of being bonded to Norah for life? I'm fucking terrified! But you don't see me crying to everyone about it, pretending it's not happening, and sticking my head in the sand." By the end of his speech he was pointing an accusing finger at her.

"I'm…I'm sorry, I didn't mean to lessen what you or everyone else is going through…"

"I know," Al sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry I snapped at you like that. It's just that I'm scared, too, Rose. I think we all are except James. You're just extra scared because you're a virgin who's petrified of physical intimacy. Or intimacy in general for that matter. The Ministry didn't just force you into an arranged marriage; it forced you into your worst nightmare."

"_Exactly_! I think I know what my dad feels like now when he encounters a spider." Rose looked down at her feet in shame. "I don't like this, Al," she whispered. "I've never felt fear like this before. What if things don't work out with Scorpius? What if he falls in love with someone else? What if he cheats on me or abuses me or ends up hating me but we can't separate because divorce isn't an option…"

"Rose," Al wrapped his arms around his best friend and she tucked her head into the crook of his shoulder. "That's the chance that everyone takes when entering into a marriage. Whether you and Scorpius date for a month, six months, or six years, those things could happen."

"I guess," her reply was muffled, "but it's a lot more likely when you don't know the person that well."

"I highly doubt that Malfoy would do anything bad to you. If you are both trying to make this work then you'll be committed to each other and the success of your relationship. He's not going to throw that down the drain. Plus, when he says that he loves you, I really think he means it, Rose."

…

The wedding of Molly Weasley to William Corner wasn't as grandiose an affair as James's marriage to Leila had been. Percy and Audrey Weasley, who were hosting the wedding, were much pickier about the guests invited, the decorations, the food and drinks served, etc.

Molly didn't mind that her parents kind of took over the plans for her wedding. She was just happy to be getting married. Her dress was modest, simple, and her only bridesmaid was her sister, Lucy.

Rose wore a peach colored dress that reached below her knees and had wide straps that covered her shoulders. This time her hair was curly, down, and pinned back with delicate clips that had Scorpius itching to reach over and take them out. It was the second night in a row that he couldn't take his eyes off of her. Hell, if he was being honest, he couldn't take his eyes off of her any time they were in the same room together.

Whenever she left his side to greet family members or other guests he felt uneasy. He sincerely enjoyed being around her. Just her presence close to him put him at ease. When Rose mercifully returned to his side after escorting her great-aunt-Muriel to the Floo, Austin Longbottom approached her.

Scorpius gritted his teeth when Austin had the balls to give Rose a slight bow and ask politely, "May I have this dance?"

Rose was obviously surprised but after a quick glance at Scorpius she nodded in acceptance, took his outstretched hand, and let him lead her out on the dance floor. Scorpius sighed in irritation but he trusted Rose.

Austin kept his hands respectfully where they belonged; one on her waist and the other clasping her hand. "I wanted to apologize for the other night. I had no right to ask you to come home with me. I was just upset about the whole marriage law thing and I was looking for a way to control my own life and who I spend it with."

Rose raised her eyebrows at him and he hurried to add, "I really would have wanted you, though. Marrying you would be a thousand times better than marrying Melanie."

Rose stopped dancing. "Melanie? You're marrying that whore?" her hand tingled with the urge to slap him even though she knew this wasn't his fault. Despite their strange past, Rose and Austin were close friends and it pained Rose to know that the girl she hated most in the world would be marrying such a (usually) good bloke.

"I wish I wasn't," he told her honestly as he pulled her back to him and began dancing again. "In case you haven't noticed, she's not here with me tonight and she wasn't with me last night at James's wedding, either."

"Why not?" Rose asked scathingly.

"She's angry at me, I don't like her, and it's just a mess," he sighed and looked so sad that Rose wanted to comfort him. She moved close to him and leaned her head on his chest.

"It will be okay, Austin," she remembered Al's words to her earlier. "We are all going through the same thing. I mean, at least you've dated Melanie before," this was said with more malice than she intended, "I'm marrying Scorpius and I've never had a proper conversation with him before the Ministry told us we were getting married."

"Rose," he took a serious tone that made her glance up at his face. "I never meant to make you feel like a slag. I didn't mean anything derogatory when I told you that I wanted to be with you. Even though I meant it, I shouldn't have said it and I am sorry. Friends?"

She beamed at him. "Friends!"

….

Scorpius saw the way Rose clung to Austin, looked up at him as he spoke, smiled broadly at him, and his heart burned with jealousy. But he'd already had his revenge. And it must have worked because Melanie wasn't here with him. Austin came to the wedding stag.

No matter how much Scorpius disliked the prick, he was one of Rose's friends and he would have to get used to that. The Longbottoms and the Weasleys and the Potters were inseparable. No matter what bitch Austin married, he would always be in Rose's life.

Resigned to make nice, he downed another glass of firewhiskey and turned his attention on the other couples. Norah and Al were dancing sweetly, Lily and Vincent were not-so-subtly snogging off to the side, and Dominique Weasley was sitting at a table by herself looking about as happy as Scorpius felt watching Rose dance with Longbottom.

Curious, he made his way over to her. "Want to dance, Weasley?"

With a snort, Dominique took his hand. "Is this a pity dance, Malfoy?"

"Kind of," he admitted. "I'm sorry your fiancé couldn't be here with you tonight."

"I'm not," she dipped gracefully and Scorpius pulled her back up effortlessly. "Azkaban is a much more fitting place for that git than a wedding."

"That's one thing we can agree on. Also, you're more than just a pity dance. I wanted something to keep my mind off of the fact that Longbottom is over there putting the moves on my fiancé."

"Possessive, aren't you?"

"I never have been before. This is a new one to me."

"You two are going to be just fine," said Dominique with surety. "Rose needs someone like you, Scorpius, and you obviously need someone like her as well. Rose and I haven't always been very good friends, but I know her well enough to know that Rose needs to be needed in a relationship. When she realizes that she's a vital part of your life, she'll be the happiest girl on the planet."

"I'm trying to show her that but she's not seeing it," he grunted.

"She will. Give her time. You'll be married in a week and you can spend every day of the rest of your life showing her just how much she means to you."

"Don't worry, I plan to."

…

Albus and Norah were both tipsy when they left the wedding reception. "You're so wonderful," sighed Norah as Albus carried her into the flat and set her on the couch.

"No, love, you're the one who's wonderful," he argued vehemently.

Shaking her head forcefully enough to loosen her pinned-up hair, she replied, "No, I'm not. I'm worthless."

"Why would you think such a thing?" asked Al as he brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed the tips of each of her fingers.

"I've been reminded of it every day of my life," she hadn't meant to let it slip out, but there it was.

"What?" asked Al.

"Never mind," she giggled and tried to distract him with a kiss but he pulled back with a serious expression.

"What is it, Norah? Who told you were worthless?"

"Nobody, I'm just a bit drunk. Will you help me into my pajamas?"

"Nor…"

"Albus, please. I'm a grown witch. I'm not going to sit here and cry to you about my issues." She held up a hand at him in warning.

"Was it your brother? Norah, we both know that there's a reason he's in jail right now. If he ever told you that you were anything but amazing, he was lying."

"Let it go, Al, I'm warning you," she stood, stumbled, and wobbled her way toward the bedroom.

Albus followed close behind her. "Just tell me. Do you think I haven't noticed the way you flinch when I sometimes lift my hand to brush your hair out of your face? Or how when I compliment you, you frown at me like you don't believe me? Just tell me why."

"Fine!" She spun to face him with pain and anger etched across her beautiful features. "Ever since the day I was born my father and brother have abused me mentally and physically! My mother was always drunk because that was the only way she could deal with them and the only time I ever had a normal childhood was when I would spend time at Scorpius's house with his family!"

Al looked at her as if he'd been slapped. "I…I didn't know. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I didn't want you to know! Everyone has issues, Al, and they are my burdens to bear. The last thing I wanted to do was make you feel bad for me or make you take on my problems. I'm sorry that I sometimes flinch away from you and I'm sorry that I'm not ready to have sex with you, but that's just the way it is!"

"Why?" Al asked in a raised voice. "Scorpius told me that slept with Lorcan and Austin, what makes me so damn different? Why are you scared of me when you were perfectly willing to give yourself to them?" The question had been burning inside of him for so long that it burst forth fraught with emotions.

"You want to know _why_ I won't sleep with you when I slept with them, you great prat? It's because I didn't care about them as much as I care about you! I didn't care what they thought of me or my body! But I care what you think, Albus. I…" she gulped. "I'm falling in love with you and it makes me nervous as fuck to think about having sex with you because I'm worried it won't be everything you want it to be. I'm worried that I'll be inadequate or maybe you'll have had better. I care about you and I want to wait and make it special because _you're_ special."

He had her in his arms before she finished speaking. He was kissing her heatedly and was gently pushing her backward, toward the bedroom. "You are special to me, Norah Alecto Carina Fiona Zabini, and I'm falling in love with you, too."

She smiled sweetly at his words, impressed that he got her name right, "I don't want to wait any longer, Albus." The words were whispered into his ear as she slid her hands up and down his muscled back.

"Are you…are you sure? You've waited this long and I don't want to make you feel like I'm pressing you into anything, Nor. I'm really okay with waiting…" she put a finger over his lips.

"I'm not nervous anymore," she told him honestly. She took hold of his hand and brought it up to her face. "I trust you and I want you. Will you make love to me tonight, Albus?"

His Adam's apple bobbed nervously as he swallowed, her words making delicious shivers of pleasure crawl up his spine. Knowing words were inadequate at this point, all he could do was nod in assent and pull her toward the bed.

…..

"Ah, the joys of married life," said Leila wistfully as she arrived home from Molly's wedding to find a sink full of dishes waiting for her.

"You're a witch, sweetheart, put that wand to work!" James slapped her arse.

"You put your wand to work, James Potter!" said Leila with her hands on her hips.

He smirked at her, "Which one, love?"

With a giggle she rolled her eyes and flicked her wand at the dishes. "It's almost scary how I can never stay mad at you. Not even when you're a chauvinistic git."

"It's because I'm so sexy," he gave her a smoldering look, trailed his own hand up his chest, and began undoing the buttons on his dress shirt.

"Don't be a tease. We both need to go to bed because we both have work in the morning."

"Work? What work? Quidditch practice is _fun_ and you work for your mum. I hardly think Aunt Luna would fire you."

"I wouldn't put it past her," Leila warned.

"Are you going to come watch me practice tomorrow?" he asked hopefully as he reached the final button of his shirt and shrugged it off.

Leila was momentarily distracted by her husband's now bare chest before she told him, "I wish I could, Godric knows it makes me hot to watch you work those gorgeous muscles, but I'm going dress shopping with Rose. She doesn't have her wedding dress yet."

"Oh that's right! I forgot you were in her wedding! That was really nice of her to ask you," said James as he moved toward her and teasingly flexed his muscles as he brushed past her to get a glass of water.

"As you know, she doesn't have many girlfriends so I was one of the first girls she asked to be in her wedding party."

"Could you do me a favor and try to get closer to Rose? She's one of my best friends and it sometimes upsets me that she doesn't have any close girlfriends."

"Of course. I've been trying, actually. I plan on taking her shopping for more than just a wedding dress tomorrow." When James raised an eyebrow in confusion, Leila sighed and explained bluntly, "I'm going to take her to get lingerie, James! Merlin, you can be thick. She needs something sexy to wear for her honeymoon!"

James groaned, "I really did not want to picture Rose in lingerie, let alone Rose doing things with Malfoy on her honeymoon. Thanks for that image, darling. You officially killed my sex drive for the night."

"I bet I could…get it back up for you," she trailed her nails up his chest and he growled low in his throat.

"I don't know if it would work…" he said thoughtfully but without conviction.

"I accept that challenge, Potter. Now go to the bedroom, take off all your clothes, and I'll be there in five minutes with the whipped cream and chocolate syrup."

….

"Thank you for being so understanding about Austin," said Rose as she casually kicked off her flats and made her way toward her bedroom.

Scorpius smiled at the fact that she stuck true to her word and hadn't worn heels to Molly's wedding. "He's your friend, Rose, even if I'm not happy about that, I understand."

He followed her down the short hall into her room which now felt as comfortable to him as his own. "I wouldn't blame you if you hated him."

"Let's just say…he didn't make a friend."

"Turn around," she picked up her usual pajamas and waited for him to obediently face the wall while she changed.

"I love it when you take that commanding tone with me," he mumbled as he obliged.

"Let's see if you love it when I demand you get out of my room while I change clothes," she shot back while hurrying to make herself decent.

"You do realize that I find that Quidditch jersey on you much sexier than the dress. Although you look fetching in anything."

"Flattery will get you nowhere with me."

"It was worth a try."

Even though neither of them said it, both realized that they were getting used to this nighttime routine. It was only the third night they'd spent together and yet it was so familiar and comforting to both of them. When Scorpius slid under the covers Rose made an effort to cuddle up to him and rest her head on his arm.

"I could get used to this," he told her quietly as his lips brushed her forehead.

Her next words simultaneously startled and excited him. "I already am."


	13. Lucky

**A/N: Links for images of what I picture to be Rose's wedding dress and her choice of bridesmaid dresses are on my profile page! Even though Norah hasn't bought her dress yet, I have her dress selections up as well! As a quick disclaimer, I do NOT own the dresses or the images. I just found them when I did a random google search. I don't own google either. Or Harry Potter. Let's just save time and assume I own NOTHING.**

**WARNING: This chapter contains EXPLICIT SEXUAL CONTENT. NC-17 rating and all that. If you are uncomfortable with that, then you can skip the first part of this chapter and start reading when you reach the first section separation (which, in my stories, is three dots).**

**I stayed up extra late tonight finishing this chapter for you so reviews would be very much appreciated for my effort **** also, that means please ignore any late-night-accidental-typos. I was half-asleep when I edited. **

**Yours, **

**MofDA**

…**..**

There was just something extra sexy about snogging in the pitch dark. Norah couldn't see past her nose but she could feel Albus everywhere. She could hear his soft panting breaths. She could taste his lips and tongue as he kissed her in a way that made her toes curl.

With a gasp she wrenched her mouth away from his and wrapped her small hand around his neck to pull him down on top of her. Albus followed her lead, letting his hips settle against hers but still supporting his upper body so he wasn't crushing her small frame.

His button-up shirt was long gone and Norah was now tugging impatiently at his belt. Her hands were shaking and it didn't help her nerves that it had been a while since she'd last slept with a bloke. Her movements were clumsy while his were smooth and sensual.

The thought crossed her mind to just lie back and let him ravish her, but she couldn't bring herself to stop touching him. Al groaned when she finally managed to undo his belt and move her hand into his trousers. Holding his hard hot length in her palm made her nerves even worse. He was bigger than either of the other two guys she had been with. Would it hurt again, like it did her first time? She hoped not. This time with Albus should be nothing but pleasurable for both of them.

His searching hand found the zipper on the side of her dress and he yanked it all the way down to her hip. Without removing the dress, his fingers delved into the opening her undone zipper provided and up to grasp her breast. He gave a growl of approval when he discovered she'd been wearing a strapless lace bra under the dress the whole night. Through the rough material of the lace cup he could feel her smooth flesh and that was what he ached to touch.

Norah gave a whimper when Al lifted himself off of her and knelt between her knees. Still unable to see him in the darkness of her bedroom, she could only feel him as he glided his hands up from her ankles to her knees where the hem of her dress was. He gripped the fabric in both hands and with one fluid motion pulled her dress all the way off her body and threw it carelessly to the floor.

Before she could even process the fact that she was now wearing only a flimsy bra and a matching lace thong, her body was covered by his again. Without the fabric of her dress between them his skin felt even hotter and Norah shivered beneath him, involuntarily opening her legs further.

Albus fitted himself into them and his lips found hers again. Norah was sighing into his mouth with need as she tangled her fingers in his hair. He nipped at her bottom lip and kept going, biting her jaw gently, her neck, her ear, her collarbone, then soothing each nip with a sinful lick of his tongue.

Her hands slid down to grasp his broad shoulders and she loved feeling his muscles ripple beneath her gentle caress. She remembered that her request had been for him to make love to her and that's what he was doing. Loving her body.

Albus could hardly think straight. He fought his baser urges and was focusing on taking his time. He knew that his actions were driving her crazy and he doubted she was even aware of the wanton way she was writhing beneath him and the way little cries of pleasure kept slipping between her swollen lips; lips swollen from his kisses.

Filled with a sense of pride, Al forced his sweat-slicked chest against hers, reveling in the erotic friction of her lace-clad breasts against his hard nipples. When he moved to unclip her bra he was surprised that her hands beat his there, tugging it off herself.

A dark chuckle rumbled in his chest at her eagerness. After her bra was gone she began to work on removing his trousers which were still on him. This time it was Al who helped her out. He leaned back to drag them down his own legs and kicked them off. Norah didn't have to say it for him to know that she wanted his underwear gone as well as she let out an angry noise when she reached down to stroke his cock and found another cloth barrier in her way.

Once those were removed as well, he was entirely naked. Norah purred in delight at this and didn't hesitate to touch every inch of him she could reach. She raked her nails lightly up his thighs, trailing around his aching member, up his stomach, chest, shoulders, down his back to his arse where she dug her nails in and pressed his hips down. Albus jerked in surprise and pleasure when she pulled his hips down, causing his cock to rub against more lace.

Norah's hands went back to his hair, pulling on it at the roots, bringing his ear to her mouth. "Please, Al, please," she begged in gasping breaths while rolling her hips up to meet his.

His head spun in desire at hearing those words but he still wanted to be gentle with her. As delicately as he could, he hooked his fingers into her panties and dragged them down, making sure to graze her legs as he went.

His body slid sensually up hers and the tip of his cock barely brushed her opening. Wanting to make sure that she was ready physically as well as mentally, he trailed a hand down her body to run his fingers through her slick folds. Yes, she was more than ready for him. Before entering her, he interlaced both of his hands with hers and pinned them on either side of her head. Trembling with anticipation, Al buried his face into the crook of her neck, inhaling her natural jasmine scent and guided himself into her in a long slow stroke. His hips continued forward until he was completely encased by her tight heat.

The strangled cry that escaped her was one of pleasure with just a hint of pain. He waited lovingly as she adjusted to him, brushing kisses against her skin and moving his hands so they skimmed down her arms, sides, to her hips.

When Norah finally felt ready to continue she moved her hips against his and he groaned into her ear in a way that made her trembling body convulse and nearly orgasm. Keeping their bodies firmly pressed together, he began moving inside of her, not moving his grip from her hips, guiding them so they moved in synchronization with his. He felt her soft hands all over his body as he made love to her; running through his hair, gliding over his back, cradling his face as she turned his head to kiss him.

After having denied themselves for so long they were both impatient. In a frenzy of thrusting, kissing, panting, and blinding pleasure, they reached their climaxes almost at the exact same time, with Albus's following only a moment after Norah's. He continued to grind against her as she rode out the residual waves of ecstasy.

When Norah came down from her high she was vaguely aware of Albus sweetly kissing her face, holding her delicate body against his masculine one in a way that was simultaneously possessive and loving.

Neither of them spoke; there was no need for words right then. Albus tucked her into his side after withdrawing from her body and fell into a peaceful sleep. Norah laid in his embrace awake as tears escaped her eyes. There was no going back now and she knew it. She had given him her heart. Never had she made love to a man like that. Never had she let herself become so vulnerable to another individual.

Never had she felt this happy, this loved, and this cared for.

…..

Leila Potter was not normally prone to jealousy. As a matter of fact she prided herself on _not_ getting jealous. However as she stood at the end of her bed, brushing her hair, staring at the sleeping form of her husband, she found herself positively green with envy.

It simply wasn't fair that he got to sleep for at least another two hours while she had to go to work. Maybe she could call in and say she couldn't make it? Her mother would understand. After all, she'd only been married for a few days. Most people would still be on their honeymoon.

No, she couldn't miss work again. She'd already missed a lot lately because of the impending wedding. With a dark satisfaction she watched as James whimpered in his sleep and fruitlessly searched her empty side of the bed with reaching arms, unconsciously desiring to hold her as he slept.

Leila moved around to his side of the bed, swept his hair back and kissed his forehead. "I have to go to work, I'll see you tonight," she whispered.

"No," her words had woken him. "Come back to bed for a little bit longer. I promise to make it worth your time." His voice was so thick with sleep that it made Leila chuckle.

"Darling, I doubt you could stay awake long enough to fulfill that promise. Have a good practice today."

Still smiling, she Apparated directly into her office at _The Quibbler_. After her grandfather gave her mother full control of the magazine, Luna had made it a much more profitable business; running all kinds of articles, not just crazy ones. It became so popular, especially with all of the attention from the war, that she had moved the premise from her home to an actual office building.

Just as she began reading through articles that needed editing, there was a knock on her door. "Come in," she called as she set aside the papers she was reading.

"Sorry to bother you, Leila, but is your mother here? I need to see her." Rose Weasley stood awkwardly in the doorway.

"Um, no she's not here yet. What did you need?"

"Well, I, uh, do you promise not to tell James?"

"Of course!" Leila waggled her eyebrows at the blushing redhead. "I love secrets!"

"I write articles for your magazine under a pen name and I was just here to drop off the latest one," Rose held up a finished draft, ready for publishing, of her most recent work.

Leila's mouth dropped open as she read the name on the parchment. "_You're_ Modest Monica?" For the past few years _The Quibbler_ had received articles to run in the paper, always signed by the same mysterious 'Modest Monica' as her pieces were always anything but modest.

Everyone Leila knew looked forward to reading the Modest Monica articles because they were always incredible. Usually hilarious, always a bit risky, 'Modest Monica' always seemed to know things she shouldn't (this often meant the inside scoop on what was going on with Harry Potter's family). The pieces were witty, edgy, entertaining, and there was no real point to them; they were just fun.

Rose bit her lip and nodded. "Erm, yeah, I made up that name in fourth year when I started sending your mum my writing. She's the only person who knows the identity of the mysterious 'Modest Monica' and now you do, too. But you can't tell anyone! My family would probably murder me for some of the stuff I wrote," Rose giggled. Everything she said was always good natured but she could imagine the look on James's face if he discovered that she was the person who described him as 'a Quidditch star who would secretly rather be curled up on his sofa at home reading a romance novel with his cat.'

"You are diabolical," Leila meant this as a compliment as she gave Rose a high-five. "What did you write about this week? Oooh…our wedding…." Leila was reading Rose's article as she spoke. "Ha! You obviously have a good sense of humor if you can make fun of yourself. I especially like this bit: 'The dancing between Rose and Scorpius could have passed as a low-budget porn film reject. Put those tongues back in your mouths, boys, rumor has it that Little Miss Not-So-Innocent is marrying the bloke she used as her own personal stripper pole Saturday night. The wedding is said to be taking place this weekend. Didn't get an invitation? Neither did I. But I'll still be there to get all of the juicy details for you!'"

Rose smirked. "Well I didn't exactly lie. I didn't get an invitation to my own wedding and I will still be there despite that."

Leila laughed openly and looked at Rose with newfound respect. "How can you sit there and talk about yourself like that?"

"Easy, when I write I pretend that I am just an objective observer. People would get suspicious if I talked about everyone in my family except myself. It would be pretty easy to figure out who Modest Monica is if I never took a jab at myself every once in a while."

"This is just absolutely crazy. Thank you for sharing your secret with me. I promise to never tell anyone your true identity no matter how many Chocolate Frogs they try to bribe me with."

Rose snorted. "You make me sound like a superhero."

"Do we have a way to contact you if there's an emergency? It would be really handy if you had your own symbol that we could project up into the sky to get your attention."

"Your knowledge of something so muggle is impressive."

"That's what happens when you're married to James Potter," Leila said this with a smile that lit up her face.

Wanting to change the subject so Leila didn't start going on and on about James and how much she loved him, Rose asked, "What time do you think you'll be done here? I'm really excited to go dress shopping."

"I don't know. 3 o'clock this afternoon at the latest. If I'm not done by then I'll tell Mum that I have plans with you and she'll finish up for me."

"Okay that sounds good. Lily, Roxy, Norah, Dominique, and Lucy will already be there. Along with my mum, probably a few aunts, and maybe even a few other female cousins who want to tag along. My family is impossible."

"I know, but you can't help but love them. Do you know what type of dress you're looking for?"

This was the longest one-on-one conversation Rose had had with Leila ever and she oddly felt herself enjoying it. Albus or Fred would never have asked a question like that. "Yes, I know exactly what I want."

"Are you going to tell me?"

"No, I want it to be a surprise. I should probably let you get back to work now because the sooner you're finished up here the sooner we can go shop for dresses! See you later, Leila!"

"Bye, Rose!"

…..

Albus Potter woke up slowly. He felt completely exhausted and it took him a few moments to remember why. Even then it came back to him in short descriptive images. Norah. Naked. Hot. Smooth. Sex.

It was the best sex he'd ever had. Despite the fact that he hadn't exactly been with many girls (only three, four including Norah) he knew that she was something special. The feeling of their bodies becoming one, their limbs entwined, was the most addicting thing he'd ever had a taste of. Barely awake and he was craving more.

That was when he fully woke up and realized that Norah's soft body was no longer lying against his. With a muffled grunt he pulled his face up from the pillow it was in and opened his eyes just a slit. Norah wasn't there.

He sat up all the way and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Where was that sweet bird? Albus got out of bed and padded, stark naked, into the kitchen. Ah, there she was. Norah was at the stove cooking, wearing nothing but his button-up shirt. Her brown hair was messy but beautiful as he recalled just how it had become so mused.

"Good morning," he murmured as he snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

"Oh damn," she pouted. "You're awake! I was going to bring you breakfast in bed."

"Who needs breakfast in bed? What I'd rather have is you in bed." The last few words were spoken in a voice that was an octave lower than his usual tone and it was accompanied with a bite on her ear.

Norah couldn't help but tease him by pressing her bum purposefully into his growing erection. "Sorry, love, but I'm starving! Then I need to shower and Floo Rose because I'm not sure what time she wants me to be there. We're shopping for dresses for her wedding today."

"Sounds…like fun," said Albus in a way that implied he didn't think it sounded like any fun at all.

"Aw, come on, you can't tell me that you like having sex with me so much that you don't even want me to go wedding dress shopping with your cousin because you miss out on a mediocre shag!"

"Mediocre my arse!" he scoffed. "You blew my mind last night. Can we do that every night?"

Norah gave him a wicked smirk. "No." at his surprised and disappointed look, she laughed. "We can do it every morning, every night, and every other opportunity when it presents itself. How does that sound?"

"That sounds like we have an opportunity right now. I can put you on this counter and satisfy you before those eggs are done."

"Prove it."

….

Two hours later Norah found herself finally putting some clothes on. "I feel like I need to shower again because I didn't clean enough the first time."

"Really? The first shower was great for me. I feel refreshed and ready to go. Do you have any other plans for the day besides dress shopping with Rose?"

"Mr. Ollivander wants me to sign a few papers that legally leave the wand shop to me if something were to happen to him. But that will only take a few minutes. Besides that my schedule is open. What about you?"

"I don't have any plans. If all you girls are out shopping maybe I'll spend some time with James and Fred. It's weird now that we're all getting married. It seems like I haven't seen them in forever."

"I hope you have a good time with them," Norah was now glancing in the mirror as she double-checked that this outfit looked good on her. "Do I look like I've been shagging all night and day? I think it's written all over my face that I got lucky."

Al grinned impishly. "I'm the lucky one, Nor, don't forget that. And no, you look like the innocent angel you always are."

….

Rose stayed true to form as everyone left her flat to go to the dress shop. They had an appointment with the best designer in wizarding London. Hermione had suggested keeping her options open by looking at muggle shops as well as wizard ones but Rose was stubborn.

"This is what I want," Rose handed the hand drawn sketch to the woman after only a brief introduction. "Do you have anything close to this?"

The woman studied the sketch that Rose had drawn up herself and nodded. "I have a dress very similar. A few minor differences, but if you'd like I can transfigure it so that it's closer to the one in the picture."

"I'd love to try it on. Don't worry about the cost of any alterations, money is no object." Everyone with Rose looked at each other. Some had looks of surprise while others had expected her to be like this.

Hermione, Ginny, and Victoire along with the six bridesmaids accompanied Rose on this shopping trip and all nine of them waited only a few minutes as Rose disappeared into a fitting room with the witch who was helping her. They could hear muffled conversation, a few hasty spells (presumably Transfigurations on the gown) and Rose emerged.

The dress was so perfect that at first nobody spoke. Everyone had different tastes in clothes, everyone had an ideal dress in mind for her wedding day, but everyone was in agreement that this was _the dress_ for Rose Weasley. It was modest yet still showed off her generous curves. It was old fashioned but with a modern twist. It was formal but not over the top.

"It's gorgeous!"

"Godric, your boobs look great in that!"

"Put that veil on and see if it goes with your train."

"You are so beautiful!"

"You have to see yourself, go look in that mirror!"

"Oh Merlin, look at the detail on that lace!"

Everyone was speaking at once and Rose had to hold up her hand to get them all to shut up. "Now that I've found my dress, I need to find dresses for my bridesmaids. I want them to be simple but flattering. Preferably strapless but I don't care what length. Go find something!"

The girls spread out, perusing the bridesmaid gowns in the shop while Rose put her regular clothes back on. By the time she rejoined her shopping party, she had over a dozen different dresses to look at. This took a lot more time than finding her dress.

Finally, after having her bridesmaids model about two dozen different styles, Rose found the one that she liked the best. It was exactly what she described. "What color do you want them in?" asked the witch as she scribbled down notes onto her parchment.

Rose whispered her answer to the witch and then said loudly, "I don't want anyone to know what color they are or see them until they have to put them on for my wedding. Lily, Dom, Leila, Norah, Lucy, Rox, tell her your sizes and the dresses will be shipped to you tomorrow."

Once that was finished, they exited the shop talking excitedly about all of the possible color choices Rose might have picked. Ignoring all of their guesses, Rose instead gave them jobs to do. With such a short amount of time to get a wedding together she was going to get everything done in one trip.

"Lily, take this order to the bakery so they can have the cake ready. Roxy, take this one to the florist. Mum, I need you to pick up my shoes; I already ordered them and they should be in today. Norah and Lucy, you two need to pick up the wedding bands. Scorpius ordered them and I'm not supposed to see them until the wedding so don't tell me what they look like. Aunt Ginny and Victoire, here's a list of decorations that I need you to find for me. Dominique, take this menu to the caterer. As soon as you've finished your errand meet me back at my flat! Go! Go! Go!"

Once everyone scampered, Leila and Rose were left alone. "Are you sure about this, Leila?" Rose asked nervously as she followed the blonde witch toward muggle London.

"Absolutely! I'm so glad you agreed to let me take you shopping for this, Rose! We're going to have so much fun!"

Shopping for lingerie that she was going to be wearing for Scorpius was hardly something that Rose would describe as 'fun' but she was starting to really like Leila and this is what the crazy witch said that she wanted to get Rose for her wedding gift.

"I don't like the two-piece ones, they would show off too much skin," said Rose as they browsed through the store.

"That's the point. Show him what he's getting! Oh, look at this one! You have to try this one on!"

"Try it on? I have to model this for you?" Rose cried, clutching the flimsy garment to her chest.

"Yes, but keep your knickers on. Just put this on over top of the under clothes you're currently wearing. I'll wait right here in this chair, you take these into the fitting room, and I want to see each and every one of them!"

Even though this was the worst part of Rose's day, Leila kept her laughing and she honestly did have a good time. By the time they were finished, Leila had purchased eight different outfits for Rose to wear in the bedroom.

They were, unsurprisingly, the last two to arrive back at her flat. Thank Merlin nobody asked them what had taken them so long and they all bought Leila's story that they just stopped for ice cream and lost track of time.

"So I just got the latest issue of _The Quibbler_ that came out today," commented Dominique. "That cow, Modest Monica, targeted you again, Rose! If I were you I'd hunt her down for calling you a porn-star film reject! As if a porn-star film producer would ever reject you!"

Leila watched in fascination as Rose went along with this perfectly, even going as far as calling 'Modest Monica' a 'no-talent writer who couldn't find a good story if it danced naked in front of her.'

Most of the girls left just before dinnertime and Rose was thankful. It wore her out to be around so many people for so long. When Scorpius arrived at her flat the only ones still there were Norah and Lucy. Norah hadn't told anyone about taking the next step in her relationship with Albus, she didn't feel like it would be an appropriate thing to just throw out there.

Scorpius, however, gave her an odd look as soon as he spotted her. "Norah," his voice held a hint of a threat and she looked up at him in surprise. Had her make-up worn off? Could he see all of the love bites Albus had left on her throat?

"Yes?"

"Not that I don't like seeing you happy, but I really hope that Albus isn't the reason for the glowing smile you're sporting today."

Norah laughed to cover her nervousness. "You're ridiculous, Scor, I just had a really good time with the girls. Albus and I haven't done anything you're accusing me of."

"Merlin, Hufflepuffs are shit at lying. And now I'm going to have to either castrate Albus Potter or go give him a stern talk about how to treat my cousin."

Norah blushed a light pink and Scorpius groaned as this confirmed his suspicions. "If I didn't enjoy spending my nights with Rose as much as I do then I would demand that Albus stay here and I sleep at your flat with you for the rest of the week, but as it is, I rather like my sleeping arrangements as they are. So do whatever the hell you want but stop strutting around looking like you've just had the best shag of your life."

This time when Norah laughed it was genuine. She hugged Scorpius tightly and whispered so only he would hear. "Rose is a lucky girl, Scorpius, you're the best cousin ever!"


	14. The Perfect Proposal

**A/N: Let me just say that apparently I was feeling really soft and fluffy when I wrote this chapter. Be prepared for romance and over-the-top sweetness! I hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

…

"Silver and red," murmured Leila as she ran her fingers over the fabric of her bridesmaid dress. She knew that Rose didn't want them to see the dresses until the day of the wedding but Leila wasn't about to wait until the day of the wedding to make sure it fit.

"What?" James poked his head into the bedroom to see his wife standing in the middle of the room in her bra and knickers, holding up a dress.

"The dress is silver with a red ribbon around the center," as she spoke she slipped it on and turned her back to him. "Zip me up."

When James ignored her command and instead slid his hands into the dress Leila squirmed away from him with a laugh. With a sigh James zipped up the dress. She spun around and looked in the mirror. "Beautiful," said James. "What's it for?"

She smacked his arm. "Rose's wedding, you git! What do you think it's for? Oh, I thought I would wear it to your next Quidditch match," her sarcasm had James smirking.

"Good, you could distract the blokes on the other team," his eyes traveled down to her cleavage for emphasis.

"I just don't get it. Rose acted like there was something special about the colors of the dress…"

"It was obvious to me the moment you told me it was for Rose's wedding."

"What? You're a bloke! How the hell did you figure out what Rose is doing with these dresses?"

"She's proving a point, Lei," James said as if this were the most obvious thing in the world. "Look at that ribbon. What shade of red is that?"

"I don't know," she ran it through her fingers. "Crimson?"

"Gryffindor. It's Gryffindor red. That's Slytherin silver. It's a peace offering to Malfoy. She's showing him, and everyone else, that she's done with the rivalry between them and if they work together they can be even better than they are apart. Those colors are really nice together."

Leila gazed at James as if he'd grown an extra head. "Sometimes your deep insight is profound. You got all of _that_ from the dress color. Merlin, I don't want to be around when you start to analyze the decorations!"

"I can't help that I'm more talented than you." Before she could hit him again, he'd ducked out of the room.

…

"That's it, I think I need to tell my dad that I can't be an Auror."

"What?" Norah sat straight up, shock evident on her face. They were in bed together, just enjoying snuggling under the covers before they would have to get up and start the day. "Why?"

"Because it's 10 o'clock in the morning and I can barely function because you kept me very active all night. How am I supposed to get up early every morning and go through Auror drills when I'm worn out from satisfying you all night?"

Norah relaxed and leaned back down onto his chest. "You're ridiculous."

"Do you reckon he'd let me come in for training in the afternoons?"

"No, I think he'll be even harder on you than the other Aurors in training since you're his son," she said reasonably.

"Damn." There was a comfortable silence that surrounded them. Albus didn't know if he was in love with the girl in his arms or if he just cared about her a lot but what he did know was that this felt right.

…..

Rose woke up wide awake. It was Tuesday. Saturday evening she would be Mrs. Rose Malfoy. Four more days of freedom. Four more days of being Rose Weasley. Four more days until she started the rest of her life.

Scorpius hadn't spent the night with her the day before. He'd stopped by for dinner and then went back to the manor. He said he had some things to do and Rose hadn't questioned him. Now, however, she had to go there herself to go over last minute wedding plans with Astoria.

Rose got ready in a hurry. This time when she used the Floo to enter the Manor, it deposited her into a study where Astoria was sitting behind a desk writing. "Oh, hullo, dear," she smiled fondly at Rose. "I'm just finishing up this letter to my sister. Take a seat while I send this out with the owl."

Rose awkwardly perched herself on the very edge of a seat across the desk from Astoria. She glanced around and knew that this must be Draco's study. It had a man's distinctive style to it; dark wood furniture, no personal touches, no tell-tale signs of a woman's influence.

"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice," said Rose stiffly.

Astoria gave a tinkling laugh. "Don't be silly! This isn't a business meeting! You're about to become my daughter. You're always welcome to pay me a visit. I'm so glad that you want to discuss wedding plans with me," Astoria looked like a kid in a sweetshop she was so excited.

"I wanted to thank you and Mr. Malfoy for letting Scorpius and I have our wedding here. I know my mum's not happy about it. Neither is my dad for that matter, but I really feel like it's right for us."

The elder witch beamed across the desk at Rose. "Not at all! We're so happy that you've decided on Malfoy Manor as the venue. And please, you don't have to call us 'Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy.' You can call me Mum or Astoria, whichever you prefer."

Despite valiant effort on her part, Rose couldn't help but chuckle. "Oh Merlin, I can just imagine the look on your husband's face if I went up to him and called him, 'Dad.'"

Before Astoria could do more than laugh in response, the man in question entered his study, causing even more laughter from both women in the room. Draco quirked a curious eyebrow at them, took a book from a shelf, gave them another curious look, and left without saying a word.

"He really is quite pleased with this arrangement. Now, dear, what does your dress look like?" Rose quickly described the dress as best she could. "White? I know that's a tradition the muggles adhere to, but ivory is very in right now. Or perhaps we could go with gold. If you'd like, I'm very handy with clothing spells, I'm sure I could-"

"No," Rose interrupted as politely as she could. "I appreciate the offer, but I'm set on white. I'm the only bride I know who is actually a virgin and in an odd way I'm kind of proud of that."

If Astoria was surprised she had the grace not to show it. "I see. Well then I'm sure you will look absolutely stunning. What sort of decorations did you have in mind? If you'd like, we could tour the grounds and you could decide where you would like to have the ceremony performed?"

Rose followed Astoria all around the mansion; she was shown a ball room, several different gardens (two of which were indoor gardens), and a parlor in which they could hold the ceremony. Rose chose one of the indoor gardens and they proceeded to go through all of the rest of the wedding plans. Focusing on the details of the event kept Rose from fretting too much about the fact that this was all actually happening.

…..

"I think that's everything," Rose rolled up the parchment and with a flick of her wand she knew it was safely back at her flat.

"I've had a wonderful day with you," Astoria hugged her tightly as a house elf appeared beside them.

"Would Mistress Rose like Rin to escort her out?"

"No thank you, Rin, is Scorpius home?"

"Yes, Mistress, Master Scorpius is being in his bedroom."

"Then I'll just drop by and see what he's up to before I leave. Thanks again, um, Astoria," she awkwardly stumbled over the name but was rewarded with a warm smile.

Rose was starting to be able to find her way around the enormous house and she only took one wrong turn on the way to Scorpius's bedroom. Wanting to surprise him, Rose didn't knock, just let herself in.

When she saw Scorpius sitting in his armchair, his elbows on his knees, she felt butterflies erupt in her stomach. Then she started to feel nauseous. She wasn't so sure she was happy about the fact that she was starting to really fancy him. Her eyes moved automatically to see what Scorpius was looking at and froze in her tracks. There was a pretty brunette lying on his bed.

The girl sat up when she saw Rose and looked pleasantly surprised. "Rose!" Scorpius stood, crossed the room to her, and kissed her forehead. "I didn't know you were coming over. Why didn't you Floo?"

"I did," her eyes were still on the vaguely familiar female who hadn't moved her ass off of Scorpius's bed. Rose's eyes narrowed slightly. "I was with your mum all day finalizing _our_ wedding plans," she sweetly emphasized the word 'ours.'

The girl held out a perfectly manicured hand to Rose. "Hi, I'm Addie. We went to Hogwarts together, but I don't think we've ever been properly introduced."

Rose's eyes flicked from the girl's outstretched hand to her face. Without moving to shake it, she said stiffly, "I'm Rose Weasley. Soon to be Malfoy." A few hours previously that idea had her cringing with anxiety but she said it confidently now.

Not knowing what exactly had come over her, she possessively put a hand on Scorpius's chest as he still had an arm around her. "Erm, I think you might have a wrong impression," Addie appeared to be amused by Rose's behavior. "Scorpius and I have been friends forever."

"Funny, he's never mentioned you."

Scorpius was torn between the urge to laugh and the urge to defuse the tension. His conscience got the better of him. "Rose, Adara is one of my best friends. We've never been anything more than friends. We've never even kissed before." He stared at her pointedly and Rose knew that he was making a jab about her snogging Austin. Clearly he was sending her the message that she had nothing to be jealous of and even if she did it would be hypocritical.

"Well, it seems like I've been put in my place," she said this genuinely with a slight blush. "I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions, I just didn't expect to walk into my fiancé's room and find a girl sprawled across his bed."

"Oh," as if surprised to find herself on his bed, Adara scurried off of it and gave her an apologetic smile. "I would've jumped to the wrong conclusion, too. Well, you two probably have a lot to discuss with the wedding coming up so soon and everything. I have my own fiancé to get back too," she didn't sound very happy about this. "It was nice to see you, Scorp. Rose," she gave her a polite nod and used the Floo to leave.

"Ever since we got engaged I've been neglecting my friends a bit too much," Scorpius hurried to explain. "So I invited Addie to hang out for a bit today, I hope you don't mind." What could Rose say? After he had been so wonderful about her friendship with Austin, even knowing how he felt about her and how she used to feel about him, then this should be a piece of cake for her. Except it wasn't.

Fancying Scorpius left her feeling vulnerable. For the first time in years she was letting someone in and giving them the potential to hurt her. It was terrifying. "No," she said at last, "I don't mind. She seemed nice," and she really did.

He twined their hands together and pulled her over to sit on the bed with him. "I'm glad you think so. I really want you to meet my best friend, Liam. Liam, Norah, and Adara have always been my closest friends."

"Who is she marrying?"

"Patrick Yaxley, but she wishes it was Liam."

"Oh!" Relief rushed through her at hearing this.

He gave her a knowing grin. "Rose, you have nothing to ever be jealous of. I don't care if Adara, or any other girl in the world, was throwing herself at me. I'm yours, babe, and nobody can change that."

…..

_Adara Garrison happily got ready to leave her house. "Where are you going?" her mum asked as she slipped on a pair of flats. _

"_Scorpius asked me to come over! I feel like I haven't seen him in forever. If Patrick comes by can you tell him that I'm at Norah's?"_

"_You want me to lie to him?" Mrs. Garrison looked as if the idea of lying was foreign to her. _

"_Ugh. Patrick is so jealous it's ridiculous, Mum. He would probably storm over to the Malfoy's house and drag me out of there after clubbing me over the head. He would then proceed to drag me back to his cave and contemplate life's deepest mysterious, like 'how can I make fire?' and 'what shape should a wheel be?'"_

"_Oh, honestly, Adara! I don't know where you got your sarcasm from!"_

"_Does that mean you'll lie for me?" she gave her mum a pouty face and clasped her hands together like she was saying a prayer. _

_With a sigh, her mother replied, "I'll just tell him you're at a friend's house."_

"_That's better than nothing. Later, Mum!" _

_Adara had to wait outside of the gates for Rin, the Malfoy's house elf, to come and let her in. "You is visiting Master Scorpius, Adara Garrison?" inquired the elf. _

"_Yep, you know me Rin, whenever I stop by it's to see Scorpius."_

"_But you is not Mistress Rose." _

"_I'm not? Well bugger! Why didn't someone tell me?"_

_With a little frown the house elf led Adara all the way up to Scorpius's bedroom, where he stood in front of his dresser looking intently at a small black box in his hand. "Hey, Addie," he said as he turned toward her. _

"_Hey, Scorp, I'm really flattered, but I'm going to have to say no," she teased as she glanced down at the box he was still holding. Even though it was closed she suspected an engagement ring was inside._

_With a roll of his eyes Scorpius handed it to her to inspect. "What do you think of this ring? Do you think Rose will like it? It's the one that I have to give her since it's the Malfoy ring, but I can't help but think she'd prefer something…simpler." _

"_I've never even spoken to the girl before, why would you think that I would know her preference of – MERLIN'S BEARD THAT RING IS GORGEOUS!" Adara snatched it out of the box and gave a low whistle. "It must be worth a fortune. What are the other gems around the diamond?"_

_In the center of the white gold band was a nearly 10 karat marquis shaped diamond. Circling the band were a myriad of other gems that were a green color. Adara suspected they might be emeralds. _

"_They're green diamonds," Scorpius said as if it was unimportant. _

"_Are you yanking my wand? Aren't those rare?"_

_He gave a shrug. "Red diamonds are the rarest color of diamond, but Malfoys apparently have always favored the color green." _

"_I might not know Rose, but any girl in her right mind would love that ring," she very delicately placed it back in the box, closed it, and handed it to him. _

"_Which means Rose probably won't. So far she always reacts the exact opposite way of how you'd expect a bird to react." _

"_Well you can worry about that later. Your letter sounded urgent. Did you need me to rush over here for something important or just for my opinion on the ring?" _

"_I actually need your help planning the perfect proposal. I've put it off until the last minute because I wanted to wait until I felt like Rose was ready for it, but the wedding is on Saturday and I'm out of time. Any suggestions?"_

"_Fuck, you've always been more romantic than me. Don't you have any ideas?"_

_He flicked his fingers at her, "A few, but I feel very unsure of all of them. I know Rose likes France and I considered proposing there, but it's too cliché, don't you think? I've considered restaurant proposals, public proposals, private proposals, proposing to her with her family…" _

"_What are some of her favorite things?"_

"_I don't know…books? Baking? She plays music. That's it! Addie, you're a genius! I've got the perfect idea!"_

_He grabbed her excitedly, lifted her off the ground, and began jumping up and down with her. Very calmly, she asked, "Are you going to tell me what it is?" _

"_Nope! I'm going to show you. Because I'll need your help with it! Come on!" He yanked her arm and pulled her out of the room._

…_.._

"I'm really glad you're here, actually, because I want you to try out that piano in your room," Scorpius gently pulled Rose to her feet and led the way out of his room. "I'm not a pianist and I don't know if it's in tune or not."

"Sure!" She brightened considerably at this. It had been such a long time since she had her fingers on an instrument.

The curtains on the large arch windows were all pulled open so sunlight filled the room. Rose skipped over to the piano bench, brushed her skirt down, and sat gingerly. "Here," he casually placed a piece of music on the piano for her to read.

Rose placed her hands over top of the keys, poised and ready to strike, then, with a deep breath, began to play. It was easily recognizable as Pachelbel's canon in D. A traditional wedding march. It just so happened that it was one of Rose's favorite classical pieces. Scorpius picked up his violin and joined in as he watched her loose herself in the music.

Slowly some of the previous stiffness left her. Less formal, she was letting her entire body move along with the piece of music. Her eyes closed and she concentrated breathing steadily, knowing this particular piece by heart. The sounds of Scorpius's violin made the tune even sweeter. When her fingers held the last note, she opened her eyes, glanced down, and her mouth opened in surprise.

On the white keys, below her hands, black letters had magically appeared. '_Marry Me?_'

Rose turned around in surprise to find Scorpius on bended knee before her. "Rose Nymphadora Weasley, I want nothing more than to make music with you for the rest of my life. With more than just strings and keys, I want to make the music of life with you; every trial we encounter a minor chord. Every triumph a grand crescendo. Every sweet little moment a soft lullaby. The music you've brought to my life is more beautiful than any piece ever composed. Will you do me the very great honor of becoming my wife?"

Tears sprang to her eyes as he said the most perfect thing anyone had ever said to her. A simple 'yes' didn't seem like it was enough to show him how much his words meant to her. Instead, she whispered, "'If music be the food of love, play on.' Yes, Scorpius, I will play the music of my life with you."

When he covered her lips with his the thought occurred to her that she hadn't even glanced at the ring he'd been presenting to her. He pulled back and gazed into her eyes. His were sparkling with such happiness that it took her breath away.

As he slid the ring onto her finger she felt it magically adjusting to fit perfectly. That was when she peeked a curious glance at it. She gasped aloud and covered her open mouth with her right hand. "It's…Oh, Scorpius, it's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

Overwhelmed by all of the emotions he was feeling, he kissed her again before saying, "I'm so very glad you think so."

…

Rose couldn't stop herself from glancing at her hand every five seconds. Her mother had jokingly asked if she was afraid it was going to jump off her finger and run away. The first place Rose had gone after leaving Malfoy Manor was to her parent's home to show the ring to her mum.

She'd ended up staying there for dinner and Scorpius had joined them. Rose was oddly quiet through the meal, but her thoughts were so intense that she couldn't focus on the conversation they were having. His sweet words had touched her heart in a way that surprised her, but it wasn't enough to melt it completely.

As much as she cared for him, as much as she fancied him, she wasn't in love with him. Yet. She was falling. Oh Merlin was she falling fast, but she hadn't reached that point yet.

It made her happy to see her fiancé getting along so well with her family. At the moment Ronald was asking Scorpius about his work with muggle relations, as Arthur Weasley was his mentor and supervisor, but Rose was too distracted to pay much attention to the words they exchanged.

No, she wasn't in love with Scorpius, but this was the first time that she truly felt like perhaps the Ministry had made a right decision after all.

….

"Your wedding is in less than a week, your fiancé just made you all weak-kneed with his proposal, and you can't stop smiling. Therefore…I'm staying at home with you every night from now until your wedding." Albus declared when Rose returned home from dinner with her parents.

"What?" she asked airily, not having heard him.

Albus rolled his eyes. "I said, that I'm worried that you're going to shag Malfoy if I leave you alone with him tonight, so I'm staying with you."

"Would it be so bad if I did?" she shot back. Honestly, shagging had been the furthest thing from her mind, but did Albus have a point? Had his proposal had such a profound effect on her that it would make her willing to give him her virginity tonight? She didn't think so.

"Not in general, no, but your wedding is so close. I know that you want to be a virgin on your wedding night so I'm just helping you achieve that goal."

Rose gave a snort, "I'm not going to be shagging Scorpius tonight, Al, don't worry. No matter how much he impressed and dazzled me today I'm not ready for anything more than we've already done."

Al raised an eyebrow at her vagueness but didn't push the issue. "I still want to spend some time with you before you're married," he pretended to wipe a tear from his eye. "My little Rosie is getting married this weekend! We may never have another opportunity to spend an evening together bashing silly muggle movies and throwing popcorn at each other."

"Let's make an event of it! We should invite Fred, Louis, James, Leila-"

"Noooo," moaned Al as he threw his head back against the couch, "Not James and Leila! They'd probably start shagging right in front of us on the sofa! But yeah, we can invite Fred and Louis. Anyone else?"

"Roxy?"

"Yeah! And Dominique!"

In the end, it was Fred, Louis, Roxanne, Dominique, Lucy, Lily, Hugo, Teddy, and James (without Leila) who came to their impromptu movie night. With all ten of them packed into Al and Rose's tiny apartment they were almost all crowded on the floor.

As Rose sat half-on-top of Al, with Fred's bum digging into her hip as many cousins attempted to squish onto the couch, Rose felt tears staining her cheeks for the second time that day. The love she felt when surrounded by her family was more intense than it had been in a long time.

When she touched a hesitant hand to the salty droplets she realized that while Scorpius hadn't yet melted her heart, he had unlocked it. And Rose didn't think that she ever wanted to lock away her heart ever again. Not even if it ended up getting broken into a million pieces. It would be worth it.

…..

**A/N: The quote Rose recites, 'If music be the food of love, play on' is from Shakespeare. What did everyone think? Is everyone ready for a wedding next chapter? **


	15. All I Ask of You

**A/N: I debated on making everyone wait just a little bit longer for this chapter, but I'm too excited about it to hold back! I hope it surpasses all of your expectations! I've had it written for over a month now and couldn't wait to get to this part of the story. Don't worry, there's still a lot more to come!**

**I'm really excited to hear what you all think of this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Harry Potter. Or Phantom of the Opera. **

**WARNING: Sexual content in this chapter.**

…**.**

Hermione Weasley was very unsure of this. Rose had warned her beforehand that the wedding was going to take place at the Manor. The two of them had quite a lengthy discussion about it the day she'd torn up Hermione's wedding plans.

Even though she still wasn't thrilled about the idea, she respected her daughter's choice and the motives behind it. Being unable to speak her feelings, Rose showed them through her actions; taking Scorpius to meet his favorite author, going to visit him at his home, inviting him to stay the night with her, and now a lot of the wedding plans were, in a her way, a gift to him.

They were on the second floor in a smaller bedroom (that is, smaller than Scorpius's while still being much larger than an average bedroom). Rose, her bridesmaids, her mother, and Astoria were all crowded in, changing into their gowns, doing their hair and make-up.

Rose was the most calm and collected of all the girls in the room. She sat, fully dressed, with her hair falling in long ringlets down almost to her waist, the tiara on her head was in place as was the veil that reached the length of her fingertips when she stood up with her arms at her sides. Now, however, her hands were clasped in her lap. She smiled timidly at her own reflection in the mirror before her, glad she made the decision of only the lightest bit of make-up; eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick.

Behind her everyone was loud and chaotic. Lily was squealing about how beautiful everyone looked, her mother and Astoria were taking it in turns to burst into tears, Roxy was worriedly putting her hands on her very slight baby-bump (Rose could tell that she was hoping nobody would notice it as Rose was still the only person who knew Roxanne was pregnant), Lucy and Norah were trying to get everyone else to sit still long enough for them to do their make-up, Leila and Dominique were arguing about the possibility of this law being over-turned before Dom's wedding as there had been some progress in that direction recently.

The bouquet of flowers that were magically suspended in the air beside her ("So they won't get crushed!" as Astoria had said) was composed of lily of the valley and ivy. The lily of the valley blossoms had been charmed silver and Rose had wanted them in her wedding because they symbolized purity, sweetness, and were said to bring luck in love. The ivy had been charmed red and was chosen by Rose because it was supposed to represent fidelity, wedded love, and friendship. She wondered if changing the color changed the symbolism of her chosen bouquet but wasn't too worried about it.

There was a timid knock on the door and everyone scurried to hide Rose from view just in case it was Scorpius. "Come in," called Astoria.

Ronald Weasley poked his head into the room. "I'm supposed to come and tell you ladies that you have about fifteen minutes," he warned before backing out of the room quickly, as if too much concentrated estrogen scared him.

The flurry around Rose multiplied exponentially as everyone did last minute touch-ups and fretted over their hair. Rose rolled her eyes as she steeled herself. All of her previous fears were still firmly in place. She was still terrified of married life, of being married to Scorpius. She still didn't really want to go through with this. Ideally, if she could, she would put a stop to this waiting and do things properly; date Scorpius for a while, fall in love with him, and _then_ marry him.

However, all of her worries and fears seemed worth it now. When she stood, everyone ceased talking and gazed at her. The one-inch strappy white heels on her feet made it so that she was only slightly taller than normal, but her presence in the room seemed to diminish everyone else's.

"I just wanted to thank all of you for being a part of this day with me. All of you have been so supportive and wonderful. Thank you." It was a short speech, if it could be counted as a speech at all, but for her friends and family it was enough.

After hugs from everyone, more tears from Hermione and Astoria as they clung to each other, Ron returned, cleared his throat to get their attention and said, "Astoria, Hermione, you need to take your seats now."

After they kissed Rose's cheeks a few more times, they left. "Here, Daddy," said Rose as she moved forward to brush off the shoulders of his dress robes.

"You look so beautiful, Rosie. Absolutely stunning. Not even your mother on our wedding day could hold a candle to you, and before this moment she was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen."

Rose grinned at him before tucking her hand into the crook of his elbow. "Lucy, you go first," said Rose. Lucy was to go first, then Dominique, Leila, Lily, Norah, and Roxanne as the maid of honor. Once they were all properly lined up, the music started. Scorpius's groomsmen were in the room next to the one Rose was in, so as Lucy exited the room, James met her just outside the door and they went down the staircase together.

Next was Dominique and Hugo. Then Leila and Louis. Lily and Albus. Norah and Liam. Finally, Roxanne and Teddy. Rose wasn't entirely surprised by Scorpius's choices of his groomsmen. His closest friend was Liam Jackson and his only cousin aside from Nathan was Teddy so everyone else had just been picked randomly from her side of the family.

"Our turn now," whispered Ron nervously as he shifted his weight from foot to foot.

"It's going to be fine, Dad," she whispered to herself just as much as to him. He smiled at her fondly, proud of her strength and courage through all of this. Together they went out of the room and took the stairs one at a time, descending slowly and gracefully.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they turned to the right and Rose's breath caught in her throat. She'd decided to get married at night and it had been the best idea she'd ever come up with. The indoor garden was dark, the glass roof made it so that stars were peaking in and the moonlight created a delicate path straight up the aisle. Those were the only lights in the room.

"Astoria charmed it so the moonlight would only spill on the aisle," her father explained in a quiet whisper.

Rose nodded. She could just barely see the outlines of some of the guests and she recalled telling Scorpius about how nervous she was about being in front of all of their friends and family reciting their vows. Had this been his idea? To keep the audience hidden from her so she wouldn't be so nervous? If so, then not only was it a very sweet gesture, but it was also working.

Everyone in the audience could see her perfectly, glowing in the moonlight as she was led up the aisle by her father. Scorpius stood before her looking like Cupid had just shot him full of arrows. She knew that he loved her, but to see it so clearly on his face made her heart skip a beat.

Rose had insisted on the tradition of having the veil cover her face all the way up the aisle. Once they reached her groom, her father took the ends of the veil very gently and peeled it back to reveal her face. Ronald kissed her on the cheek and whispered, "I'm so proud of you."

He took her hand, held it for just a moment longer than was normal, before turning and placing it in Scorpius's hand. Scorpius smiled at his soon-to-be father-in-law in a way that he hoped was reassuring. Rose took the final step, away from her father to her fiancé, and Ron turned to sit beside his wife in the audience.

The moonlight glinted off of Scorpius's blonde hair in a way that made him look almost angelic and Rose felt like she was seeing him clearly for the first time. As the Ministry official began the ceremony Rose's eyes skimmed Scorpius's face closely. His eyes looked grey in the moonlight but she knew there were specs of blue there. He had high cheek bones, a masculine jawline, and his blonde hair fell over his forehead in silky strands. He was smiling at her the whole time and when she looked at his lips she trembled as she remembered what they felt like against hers.

Scorpius couldn't believe this was actually happening. Part of him had the urge to reach down and pinch himself to make sure he was awake. This was a happiness so profound that he'd never expected to feel this way, especially because of a woman. He'd never pictured himself getting married so young. He had plans. He wanted to become an Auror and travel around the world catching the bad guys. But now all he wanted was Rose.

She looked even more beautiful than usual, which was saying something, and he was beyond relieved to see that she appeared to be very calm. There was even a small smile tugging at her lips when their eyes met.

They repeated the traditional vows, opting to not write their own, and when it was time for them to kiss, Scorpius very gently placed one hand on her waist and the other on her cheek, cupping her face. The kiss was chaste, sweet, and the moment they broke apart, lights came up, and everyone in the audience leapt to their feet in applause.

Rose paled as she realized just how many people were there. Thank Merlin someone had come up with the idea of performing the ceremony in nothing but moonlight or she probably wouldn't have been able to get any words out. She also belatedly noticed that the music had been performed by a live pianist and violinist, not from a recording.

Her husband laced their fingers together and they retreated down the aisle, their bridal party just behind them. The reception took place in the biggest ballroom, which had three strategically placed fireplaces that were so large they provided the only necessary light. The wedding flowed into the reception without a hitch.

It had been decided that since the wedding was taking place after sundown, they would only provide an assortment of finger foods, refreshments, and cake instead of an actual meal. Once all of the guests were assembled in the ballroom, the pianist and the violinist began to play a tune that Rose recognized with surprise. "Our first dance," Scorpius whispered as he led her out into the middle of the room.

Everyone stepped back, clearing the way. Alone in the center of the ballroom, Scorpius wrapped an arm around her waist, held her hand in his and began to sweep her around the floor to the music. It was the tune '_All I Ask of You_' from _The Phantom of the Opera_. Rose knew why he chose it. Most of the lyrics to the song fit them perfectly and he was certain she would know it.

As the song played on, Rose played the lyrics in her head. '_…Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime. Say the word and I will follow you. Share each day with me, each night, each morning. Say you love me...__**you know I do. **__Love me, that's all I ask of you."_

He spun her around, then drew her body back to his, dipping her and pulling her back up with an effortless grace that only a Malfoy could pull off. When the song was finished, they kissed again softly and then everyone else came onto the dance floor to join in.

…

After dancing until her feet hurt, Rose sat at a table with Scorpius, Albus, and Norah. Every single person in attendance at her wedding hugged her and paid their congratulations to the couple. Even the people who Rose didn't recognize at all.

Adara Garrison happened to catch Rose by herself when Scorpius had been engaged in a conversation by Rose's parents. "I've never seen him look so happy," Adara said with a nod toward Scorpius. "You two look wonderful together. I hope that he can make you as happy as you make him."

With that elusive statement hanging in the air, Adara had been dragged off by Liam, both of them knowing that this could be their last chance as two single individuals to be together, though neither would admit to their feelings for each other.

Rose noticed with pride that the decorations were perfect. Elegant silver tablecloths adorned each table, with a centerpiece that was a large red letter M. From the ceiling fell twinkling fairylights.

Both of her parents cried when they hugged her, and it was Fred who had whispered conspiratorially in her ear, "Good luck tonight!"

James was already quite tipsy and Leila had to keep a close eye on him. Louis took a turn with Rose on the dance floor, and used the moment to tell Rose that he really thought Malfoy was good for her and they would be happy together if she let herself. She privately agreed with him and when the song ended he returned to Verity.

When Rose whimpered to Scorpius that her feet were killing her and she was ready to call it a night, he gave a very tactful exit speech, thanked everyone for coming to celebrate such a special day with them, and scooped Rose up into his arms. With a loud _crack!_ they Disapparated.

...

Rose and Scorpius arrived in his bedroom. She experienced a moment of smugness that she could now Apparate in and out of any room in the Manor on her own. It evaporated almost at once as she took in the scene before her. Scorpius set her gently on her feet as he'd still been holding her.

The bed was made neatly. It was also showered with rose petals and candles floated around the room, flickering lightly. Together with the fireplace, they bathed the room in a romantic glow. Quite honestly, it was beautiful. "Sorry," Scorpius mumbled, sounding almost embarrassed, "This was all my mum's doing. I can vanish it all in just a moment," he was searching his robes for his wand.

"No," her voice was barely above a whisper as she stopped him, "I like it. If you don't mind, I'd like to freshen up just a bit?" she motioned to the bathroom.

"Take your time," Scorpius encouraged. Rose rummaged through one of her bags, grabbed a few things and disappeared into the lavatory. With shaking hands she somehow managed to get herself out of the gorgeous wedding gown she was wearing and shimmied into a pair of white lace panties and a white silk flyaway babydoll piece of lingerie that Leila had bought for her.

There were other colours that suited her better than white; red, green, blue, even black. But white was a pure colour. The colour of wedding dresses and the symbol of innocence. Moving to work on her hair, she raked a brush through it and brushed it back over her shoulders so it wouldn't hinder his view of her in this outfit.

Nervously, hoping Scorpius would appreciate her effort, she stepped back into the bedroom. He was there, of course, sweeping rose petals off of his blankets as he drew them back. Most of his clothing had been removed, but he was still wearing his trousers.

Not for the first time, Rose appreciated his physique. Her imagination began to wander. What would that magnificently sculpted chest look like hovering above her, sheen with a layer of sweat, rippling as their bodies moved together? Heat flooded her face and she was again thankful that they were friends now.

She could do this. Scorpius Malfoy was officially on the list of people who she trusted explicitly. That listed consisted of very few people; her mother, father, Hugo, Albus, James, Fred, Louis, and now Scorpius. Norah and Leila had yet to prove themselves.

Feeling her eyes on him, Scorpius turned toward her and froze. Instantly his eyes darkened with what Rose knew now to be lust. "Rose," he sighed as she moved toward the bed. They stood, facing each other, on opposite sides of the bed. "We don't have to do this tonight."

Rose frowned at him, "We have to eventually, why not tonight?"

"Because I can tell that you're not ready for it."

"I am," she argued, and in a way, she knew that she was.

"I'm talking about emotionally. You don't...you're not...bloody hell. Rose, you know that I love you. But you don't love me. Not yet. I want to wait until you're in love with me, too."

"What if...what if that never happens? Or what if it takes months?"

"Then it takes months," he said unconcernedly, "but it will happen. I plan to do everything I can to make you fall in love with me, Rose Malfoy," it was the first time she'd heard her own name.

"But what about the Ministry and-"

"Honestly, Rose, I don't give a flying fuck what the Ministry says or does about this. I am not going to make you do this. However," he couldn't tear his eyes away from her body, "there is something I would like to try, if you'll let me."

"What is it?"

"Do you trust me?" he thought he knew the answer; he hoped desperately that he knew the answer, but he had to hear it.

"Yes," there was no hesitation in her voice.

"Then lay on your back on the bed," he commanded. Rose did as she was told, despite the nervous butterflies erupting in her stomach. "Rose, love, you're going to have to open your legs just a bit wider."

With a nervous laugh, she realized that she'd been clamping her legs together tightly. After a deep breath, she let her thighs part. Scorpius had his hands sliding up and down her calves. They moved up, to her inner thighs, and spread her legs just a little more. His touch was warm, almost comforting, and he wanted to continue running his hands over her legs for the rest of the night; they were smooth and soft under his fingertips.

Then, without warning, his hands griped her behind her knees and he pulled her body down to the foot of the bed so her legs were hanging off the end but her upper body was still lying on the mattress.

Scorpius stood with his lower body between her legs as he leaned over her to kiss her. This kiss was rough but she liked it. Like their very first kiss it was hungry and she could feel his hardness against her leg. For a moment she let herself get lost in the kiss. It was just so wonderful to kiss him.

Slowly he kissed and nipped his way down her body, swirling his tongue around her belly button, as his fingers slid into the hem of her knickers and slid them down her legs. Staring up at the canopy above her head, she willed herself not to blush. She would not think about the fact that her lower body was now completely naked. She would not think about how Scorpius was now looking at her most private and intimate area.

Her body jerked when she felt a warm finger glide over her entrance. "Easy, Rose, realx," he encouraged softly, "I'm not going to hurt you."

Not being able to bring herself to speak, she just nodded. Her head snapped up when Scorpius knelt on the floor before her, making his face almost level with her sex. With a renewed shyness she realized what he meant to do. "Scorpius, you shouldn't do this. You don't have to. I mean, I know you won't be getting anything from it, and I-"

"Rose," he interrupted with a little smirk as they gazed into each other's eyes. "How could you possibly think that I wouldn't get anything out of this? I will get a lot of pleasure out of pleasuring you. I want to do this. I want to taste you. Please?"

Rose bit her bottom lip as she thought over his request and he groaned at the sight. "Alright, but don't expect much. The only time that I've ever…you know…had an orgasm was that night with you."

"Then be prepared for another wonderful experience," he gave her a cocky smirk and lowered his head. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. He dipped his blonde head down until she could feel his hot breath against her inner thigh. He kissed her there before working his way up to the apex of her thighs.

The sensations overwhelmed her when his tongue stroked along her opening. She threw her head back and arched her hips up to meet his face involuntarily. With a feeling akin to amusement, Scorpius reached up to grip her hips firmly with both of his hands. He'd been hoping to probe her with his fingers as well as his tongue, but it was obvious that she wasn't going to make any effort to restrain her own body and he would have to do it for her.

When his tongue entered her, she let out a soft cry and tried desperately to buck her hips up but found that she couldn't. Her hands moved to tangle into his blonde hair, tugging on it. His eyes glanced up into hers and he almost had an orgasm just by seeing the look of lust on her face. The ocean blue eyes he loved were like dark sapphires. The lovely red lips he loved to kiss were parted slightly as she panted, and her messy hair fell loosely around her face. There was a light blush on her face and he knew instinctively that it was from pleasure and not embarrassment.

"Touch yourself," he had removed his tongue from her to say the command. He kissed her nether lips gently, loving the way she tasted there.

"What?" Rose asked in confusion.

Not wanting to stop his assault on her lower body, he glided his hands up wordlessly to illustrate his meaning. With expert fingers, he pinched her nipple through the thin fabric of her negligée and she let out a sharp, "Oh!" of understanding and surprise.

Her hand replaced his as his retreated to continue holding her hips in place on the bed. Scorpius couldn't help but watch her writhe on the bed as she massaged her own breasts and he thrust his tongue repeatedly into her, licking and suckling as he went.

It was only a few moments before he'd brought her right to the edge. Her noises and movements were driving him crazy. He fought internally for control of himself. A darker side of him begged to remove his trousers and thrust into her with his hard and aching cock, but he resisted.

When she hit her orgasm, Scorpius almost did the same. She arched off of the bed, crying out meaningless sounds, and he slowed in his ministrations until pulling away altogether.

For several long moments, she could see nothing but stars exploding behind her eyelids. No wonder people loved sexual acts so much! That was bloody amazing. She felt almost ashamed to admit that there had been a few minutes where she'd lost control of herself completely. It was a good thing he'd been restraining her hips.

Still panting heavily, she barely noticed that Scorpius had slid up onto the bed with her. He wrapped a strong arm around her waist and pulled her against him to kiss her slightly sweaty neck. "You're beautiful," he murmured.

"Mmm, you're amazing," she replied.

"Tired?" he chuckled.

"Yes, I am. Are we going to sleep now?"

"I think we should. It's been a long day for both of us," he hauled her body up to the head of the bed and pulled the blankets over both of them.

"Thank you," she whispered sincerely, "for not pressuring me into anything and for...well...that thing you just did."

"It was, quite literally, my pleasure, Mrs. Malfoy," he loved being able to call her that now. To calm himself down, Scorpius pulled away from Rose, staying on his side of the bed and tried to think of very non-sexual thoughts. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep; he hadn't been lying when he said it had been a long day.

Rose, however, despite how sated she felt, couldn't sleep. Her mind kept reliving the events that had just taken place. Every once in a while she would glance at the sleeping form of her husband and she would smile. He really must love her.

If Rose Weasley was a weaker woman she might have been tempted to break down into tears then. Desperately she wanted to love him back, but it wasn't there yet. It was so close she could almost taste it. Deep down, something was telling her that she would love him one day, it just hadn't happened yet.

Sex. No matter how hard she tried not to think about it, it was on her mind. She'd been so anxious about this night. So worried. And she had tried so hard to be prepared! To make this good for both of them. How could she _not_ have sex on her wedding night? It wasn't fair to Scorpius. Or herself.

Bravely, with trembling hands, she reached over to stroke his chest. It was warm, solid, and deliciously muscled. He'd shed his trousers before climbing into bed, which left him wearing only a pair of boxers. Rose pulled the blankets off of him. Perhaps it was just a bit perverted on her part to stare at the nearly naked man beside her, but she didn't care at the moment.

She scooted closer to him, remembering belatedly that she hadn't put her panties back on. But it didn't matter anyway. She threw a leg over his hips and sat up, on top of him, straddling him.

Very gently, she pulled his boxers down his legs. It was obvious that he was still asleep, but somewhere subconsciously he must have been aware of what was happening because before her eyes his limp cock hardened and grew. With a mixture of curiosity and desire, she wrapped her hand around it. It only took one strong stroke before Scorpius moaned, his hips thrusting up into her hand and he awoke.

"Rose," he moaned as he opened his eyes to gaze up at her. His hands moved up her body to rest on her ribcage, "We don't have to do this tonight."

"I want to," she protested. And she did want to. Not until that moment did she fully comprehend how much she wanted this. Her body was practically vibrating in anticipation. "Please?"

"Fuck," he groaned as he squirmed to get his boxers the rest of the way off and kick them out of the bed. How could he refuse her anything she wanted, let alone something that he wanted desperately himself?

Rose leaned forward and braced her hands on his chest as she began to lower herself onto him. As his cock entered her, she couldn't suppress the moan that escaped her. Immediately she felt self-conscious, but Scorpius was quick to assure her, "It's alright, baby, I love it when you make that sound."

She felt his member reach a barrier and couldn't help the thought run through her mind, _'That's it?'_ but before she could contemplate it further, Scorpius broke through that barrier with one strong thrust upward. Rose let out a soft scream that was a mixture of pain and something that felt so bloody wonderful that she didn't have a word for it, as he filled her to the hilt.

There was a terrifying moment when she wondered if perhaps he'd gone in too far and wasn't supposed to push through that barrier, but that worry left her just as quickly as it had come. She trusted Scorpius. He wouldn't hurt her.

Feeling herself stretched this much was painful but she didn't even notice the tears leaking out of her eyes until she felt his gentle hand on her cheek, brushing them away. "It'll feel better soon," he promised.

They didn't move. She could feel him inside of her. Every once in a while she would feel his waiting cock twitch and it made heat pool to her core. "Scorpius," she said in a panic, "I'm not on a potion or anything."

"No worries, love," he snatched up his wand from the bedside table and waved it over her abdomen. There was a tingling sensation as he uttered a simple incantation then he tossed the wand aside.

Rose rocked her hips forward and Scorpius let out a hiss as he was still trying to restrain himself. It was the ultimate test of his self-control. She felt so damn good; tighter, hotter, and wetter than he'd imagined she would be. This was the best thing Scorpius Malfoy had ever experienced and he wasn't going to ruin it by pounding into her like a selfish prat.

"It's okay," she told him as she moved her hands to grip his shoulders, realizing with a sting of guilt that she'd left half-moon marks on his chest from her fingernails. "You feel wonderful, it doesn't hurt anymore."

Scorpius rolled his hips up, knowing that his pelvis would hit her in just the right spot. When it did, he was rewarded by feeling her muscles clenching around him and her body shuddered. They started out slow, both moving gently against each other. Rose tried to follow his lead, trusting him to know what he was doing, and Scorpius tried to keep it at a pace she would be comfortable with.

Thankful that this wasn't frenzied or rushed at first, Rose let herself revel in the new sensations bombarding her. She laid her upper body down onto his, resting her head on his shoulder, breathing heavily into his ear. This slightly different position felt just as good as the first, if not better.

His hands moved to grip her bottom as she began to rock faster. Scorpius fisted a hand into her hair and brought her mouth up to meet his. With a groan, his tongue thrust into her mouth in the same rhythm as his cock was thrusting into a more sensitive part of her.

"Scorpius," his name was a delicious combination of a whisper, a moan, and a prayer. That did it. That was the moment he let his senses take over his reasoning ability. With strength and agility he'd never shown her before, he flipped them around so he was on top.

He gripped her lingerie and tore it down the front, tugging the shredded garment off of her body, and throwing it aside. It was the first time he'd seen her entirely naked. With a deep growl he somehow managed to plunge even deeper into her as he bent his head down to take a nipple into his mouth.

Rose couldn't help the screams of pleasure that slipped from her lips, nor did he want her to stifle them. His arm wrapped around her thigh, hitching her leg up higher on his hip, his fingertips trailed over the smooth skin of her leg, caressing her so sweetly and gently as the rest of him claimed her with heated intensity.

"Oh, Scorpius," she was arching her body up into his and she didn't have to say it for him to know that she was loving everything he was doing. And if she loved it, he wasn't about to stop. That was until she whispered those simple words that sent him over the edge, "I want to feel you cum inside of me."

The orgasm that rippled through him was the most intense he'd ever felt. Rose got her wish. She felt the hot liquid spill inside of her and it was so erotic and wonderful that her orgasm followed his almost immediately.

As he collapsed on top of her, she couldn't help but smile. That had been so much better than she ever thought it could be. It hadn't hurt very badly, he was very good at it, and obviously she'd been as well. The effect she'd had on him was obvious. "I love you," he told her roughly as he kissed along her jaw, up her ear, back down to her lips.

They snogged heatedly for a while longer before the newly wed couple snuggled up together and fell asleep, naked, their bodies entwined as one.

...

When Rose awoke, it wasn't as she had expected. There was no sunlight pouring in through the large arch windows, and the room was still hot and scented with their previous lovemaking.

It took her a few groggy moments to realize that the reason she'd woken up was because Scorpius was ready for round two. She was lying with her back against his chest, curled up on her side. His arm was around her, massaging her breast gently.

His other hand was between her knees and sliding up, up, up. Rose let out a soft moan, stretching her arms back to wrap around his neck. He bent his head down to kiss her neck, sucking on the sensitive area.

The hand between her thighs lifted her leg enough for him to be able to slide his hips up and press his hard length against her. Of course he would always wait for her permission before entering her and he didn't have to wait long before he heard her sweet voice rasp, "Scorpius, what are you waiting for? Take me again."

This time he entered her in an agonizingly slow move, letting her savor every moment of it. When he was finally buried deeply inside of her, she let out a contented sigh, feeling like she was complete in a way that she had previously been lacking.

As he moved inside of her, she knew that life didn't get any better than this.


	16. Spilling Secrets

**A/N: Here is the next chapter! It's just a little bit of a filler chapter. There are some important progressions with certain characters, but overall I just needed a transition chapter from the wedding night to the honeymoon! **

**WARNING: Some sexual content, language, and just a smidge of alcohol use.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

…**..**

The moment he was sure that his wife was asleep Scorpius very carefully peeled back the blankets that were draped over them. He knew this would happen, had been prepared for it, and he knew that Rose would be absolutely mortified if she woke up to find it herself in the morning so he would get rid of it.

The blood she'd shed during their first time together stained his blue sheets with a deep dark red. It didn't bother him, but he knew it would bother her. He pulled his wand from the table beside him and gave it a few sharp flicks. Everything was clean of all blood and other liquids that were also staining the sheets.

He honestly hadn't expected to have sex tonight. He'd meant what he'd said about waiting until Rose was ready. Apparently she had been. He ran through the evening again in his mind's eye and felt himself becoming hard. Again. Merlin, wasn't three times enough? Of course, he knew from previous experience he could easily go more than three times but normally he needed just a bit more recovery time than ten minutes and a bit more incentive than just his own thoughts.

Should he wake her up again? No, he would let her sleep. She must need it. He'd already caused her to orgasm three times that night; once with his mouth, twice with the hardness currently tenting the sheets around his hips.

He nestled back into his bed ignoring his pulsing desire. They were married now and she obviously enjoyed having sex with him so he was hopeful that perhaps in the morning he could experience her again. Then maybe in the shower. On the desk. He could take her from behind with her on her hands and knees. There was a whole world of sexual pleasures he would introduce her to.

With so much to look forward to, Scorpius let himself drift off into a night of peaceful dreams.

...

The first thing Rose noticed when she opened her eyes was how good she felt. Her muscles ached but pleasantly. She was lying on her back and when she turned her head she saw Scorpius sleeping soundly, his mouth agape, lying on his stomach with his hand resting on her arm.

Feeling embarrassed about the way she'd jumped him last night and the fact that she was currently naked beneath the blankets, she carefully slid out of bed and started looking for her clothes.

The bags that held an assortment of clothes from her wardrobe were sitting beside the fireplace. She made her way over and began to paw through them. Knickers, shorts, one of Al's old t-shirts. Once she was decent she glanced around the room with an absurd urge to go home.

But this was her home now. She wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling cold. This didn't feel like home to her. Would it ever? Perhaps if she did something familiar. Scorpius's desk was in the far corner of the room and Rose let her feet take her there automatically. She sat down, pulled a scroll of parchment from a drawer, and ran her hands over the smooth surface.

A quill sat already in an ink bottle just waiting for her. Feeling almost giddy, she reached for it and began to write.

_As promised, my avid readers, I managed to be in attendance at the wedding everyone is talking about…._

…..

Rose was almost finished with her article. Scorpius had been rolling around on the bed for several minutes and she was sure he was about to wake up. "Rose?" ah, there it was.

"It's about time," she said softly as she set the quill back in the inkwell and turned to face him. "How did you sleep?"

"Best night of sleep I've had in a long time," he told her honestly. He got out of bed and stretched without caring one bit that he was entirely naked. Rose blushed and turned back to the parchment in front of her.

"I'm glad to hear that," she mumbled as she reached for the quill again.

Scorpius's hand covered hers before she could reach it. He bent his head down and started kissing her neck, his lips trailing all the way up to her ear. "Whatever you're writing, can't it wait just a bit longer? I'm a newly married man, love. I think it goes without saying that I would like it very much if you would come back to bed with me."

Rose almost objected. She was wrapped up in her writing and it had to be turned in to Luna or Leila that day. But she couldn't tell him that, could she? Not unless she wanted him to find out about her secret alias. Not to mention the way his mouth was caressing her skin and the way in which he'd spoken to her had her tingling in renewed excitement.

"Who knew I would be such an addict to sex?" she mused aloud.

Scorpius smirked against her shoulder as he tugged the collar of the t-shirt down. "I had a feeling you might be," he admitted. Rose stood up and raised her arms for Scorpius to peel the shirt off of her. She was too turned on to be offended by his assumption. "You're so beautiful, baby," he murmured as he leaned over and gazed at her now exposed upper body from over her shoulder.

His hands moved to cup her breasts and Rose leaned back into him. He slid one arm down to lock around her waist, holding her up as she melted into his touch. Her eyes, which were previously watching his hands move over her, went now to the wall in front of her. She stared in shock as she realized they were right in front of Scorpius's mirror.

The girl that was looking back at her didn't even look like her. No, the girl in the mirror had the look of a seductress, her red lips were swollen, her eyes were dark with lust, she was arching her back to press her chest firmly into the masculine hands that held her. The man behind her was much more familiar. Scorpius's blonde head was bent as he nipped at her jaw and she tilted her head back to make it easier for him. Even as she watched his hand that was on her waist glided down into the waist band of her shorts and his fingers began to stroke her through her panties.

"Uh," she hadn't meant to let that moan slip out, but when one of his lithe digits entered her, she honestly couldn't help it.

"Come on," he coaxed, "let's go back to bed."

Feeling too short of breath to speak, she nodded and let him scoop her up before running back toward the bed.

….

"Well, do you think she did it?" asked James as he sat with Fred, Louis, and Albus in the sitting room. Leila was at work so James had invited cousins and brother over.

"Did what?" asked Al as he continued to flip through the Quidditch magazine James had sitting out on the coffee table.

"Malfoy," supplied Fred with a waggle of his eyebrows.

"Oh, we're talking about Rose?" Louis asked.

"Yes. She was really worried about her wedding night, wasn't she?" James looked to Al and Fred for confirmation as Louis hadn't been privy to that conversation.

"I'm sure she got over it. The way Malfoy was looking at her last night he probably did his damn best to convince her," Fred scowled as he said this. It was true that he was beginning to like Scorpius but he didn't like any guy looking at Rose with that hungry expression.

"Do you think she'll tell us if she did?" Al grimaced as if he would really rather not know.

"I don't think so. It's not like we tell her when we get laid."

"Yeah, but I reckon it's different for girls. Especially ones who were previously virgins. Rose doesn't have other friends to gossip with. If she wants to talk about sex with Malfoy, you can bet it will be with one of us."

Everyone looked around with trepidation; each hoping that he wasn't the one she would come to when she needed to discuss her sex life. "I'll tell Leila to get her arse over to that manor and become Rose's best friend immediately."

"In less than one week it'll be me," Fred said sadly.

"Heather's not so bad," said Al consolingly.

"Nah, it could have been worse. Roxanne won't shut up about her wedding. What is it about marriage that gets girls so emotional? I actually found her crying about flowers the other day. Flowers! You know why she was crying? Because she couldn't decide which ones she wanted in her bouquet."

"Girls are barmy," offered James with a shrug.

"Yes, but Roxanne has been particularly barmy lately. Sometimes I wonder if she really wants to marry Calvin at all! I know they've been dating for a long time, but she's been getting really angry with him lately over stupid little things. I think she's purposefully picking fights."

"Why would she do that? She has to marry him," said James.

"I don't know!" Fred cried in exasperation. He clearly was fed up with the way his sister was acting. "I swear to Merlin I caught her eating chocolate frogs dipped in cheese the other day," everyone grimaced at this.

"Mood swings, weird food cravings," James ticked these items off on his fingers. "I think we've all been around enough pregnant relatives to know what those signs point to, mate."

"No!" Fred growled as he jumped to his feet. "Roxy wouldn't….she can't be…she's a witch! There's no excuse for a witch to accidentally get pregnant! There are potions and spells to prevent this…"

"Easy there, cousin," said Louis as he put a hand on Fred's shoulder. "Potions are temperamental. If she forgot to take it one time, or even if she was an hour late taking it, she could have easily gotten pregnant."

"She would have told me. If she was pregnant she would have come to me and told me and we would have worked out a way to tell mum and dad without them killing her. She's my sister."

"I don't think she would have told you," offered Al unhelpfully. "I mean, you're her brother. Who's very protective of her. Maybe she was worried that you would kill Calvin?"

"That's…that's just…well, yeah, okay, I might have considered it, but I wouldn't have seriously done it! Alright then, if you really think she might be pregnant, who would she have told if not me?"

"Rose," the other three boys said all at once. Then they laughed. "She would have told Rose," said Al who was still chuckling. "Because Rose doesn't gossip, she doesn't even talk to other girls, and she's close enough to Roxy that she would feel comfortable telling her secrets."

"Sometimes you think just a bit too much like a bird," said James with a shake of his head at his little brother.

"Look who's talking. Leila told me about what you interpreted from Rose's bridesmaid dresses," Al teased.

James turned just the faintest shade of red. "Yes, well at least I don't still take bubble baths!"

"Hey!"

"Oi!" Fred interrupted, "Can we please get back to the topic at hand? My sister might be pregnant! I can't very well go up and just ask her if she's up the duff, so how do I figure this out?"

"Ask Rose. She's one of your best friends and if anyone knows it will be her."

"Good plan! Let's go," Fred confidently strode to the fireplace.

"Are we really going back to Malfoy Manor?" grumbled James.

"Yep! Malfoy Manor!" Fred declared loudly as he stepped into the grate with a handful of Floo Powder.

…..

"I'm hungry and I need a shower," Rose grumbled as she and Scorpius were still tangled up in his bed well into the afternoon.

"Rin brought up some fruit and muffins while you were sleeping," Scorpius informed her with a flick of his hand toward a tray of food that sat on an end table by the fireplace.

Rose went to get up but Scorpius pulled her back down. "I'll get it, you stay right there. You're not leaving that bed, Mrs. Malfoy," he teased as he strode, stark naked, across the room to get the tray and bring it back to the bed.

As they lay together munching on an assortment of strawberries, grapes, melon, and blueberry muffins Rose felt oddly happy. She really could get used to living like this. To living with Scorpius in Malfoy Manor.

With a contented sigh she flopped back onto the bed, making sure the sheet was covering her naked body. "Are you still shy around me?" he teased as his fingers tugged on the edge of the sheet.

"Just a little," she admitted as she batted his hand away. Scorpius growled, pushed the tray of food aside, and began to ravish his wife with kisses. Startled, Rose squirmed, and kicked the tray to the floor with a loud clatter.

Scorpius didn't even seem to notice as he pinched her nipple through the satin sheet and Rose cried out, certain parts of her body were feeling oddly sensitive after so much attention.

And that was when four of her male cousins busted into the room with their wands drawn.

…..

Because Fred, James, Albus, and Louis were Rose's cousins they could Floo in and out of the Manor at will. Also, because they were there to see Rose, the Floo network deposited them into the room that Scorpius had designed just for her that was down the hall from his bedroom.

"Where are we?" asked James as he scratched his head and glanced around. Piano, other assorted instruments, book shelves, and a muggle telly? What the devil was going on here?

"Must be some room in Malfoy Manor. Come on, let's go find Rose," Fred impatiently tugged on James's arm and the four boys crossed the room and exited into the hallway.

As they were walking along, trying to figure out which way to go, a noise caught their attention. Faint muttering, a loud clashing of metal, and then a scream they all recognized as belonging to Rose.

Nobody had to speak for them to know they were all thinking the same thing; Scorpius was hurting her. Had all of his previous actions been a ploy? Was Rose refusing him sex so he was abusing her?

With wands drawn, not one of them hesitated before charging gallantly into the bedroom. "GET THE FUCK OFF OF HER, MALOY!" screamed James as he saw what was going on.

Scorpius was pulling at the sheet covering Rose as she tried to keep it firmly in place over her body. "James!" Rose cried as her face flushed red from embarrassment. Scorpius obliged to James's warning and slid off of the bed slowly, being sure to keep his raging erection out of their view by subtly pulling on a pair of boxers that were beside the bed and his bed was also up high enough that his hips downward was not viewable to the boys standing across the room.

"I told you," James snarled, "I told you that if he hurt you we'd kill him!"

Fred, Louis, and Albus were all nodding in affirmation at this statement. "He's…he's not-" Rose stuttered.

"Like hell!" Louis growled. "You don't have to defend him, Rosie, we're here! We heard a crash and you screamed. Now move aside so we don't accidentally hit you with our curses when we tear him limb from fucking limb!"

"No!" Rose scooted so she was blocking their aim at her husband. Still flushed red, she mumbled quietly, "I swear to Merlin, he wasn't hurting me. The crash you heard must've been the tray," she motioned to the floor.

All four boys glanced down to see a metal tray upside down, with food spread around it as if it had just toppled over. "We were eating," she looked down at the sheets, unable to hold eye contact with any of them. "Scorpius teased me about still being shy around him because I was trying to keep myself covered. When he…when he, erm, kissed me, I accidentally kicked the tray off of the bed."

"And the scream?" demanded Fred.

"I'd rather not tell you about that one, but I promise he wasn't hurting me," she said fiercely.

"And we would really rather not know," James assured her. "Well, if you're sure he wasn't hurting you, then we'll wait in the hallway to let you, uh, get dressed. We need to speak with you for a just a moment and then you can get back to…to whatever it was…you were doing."

"You can wait in here," she objected as she stood up, securing the sheet around her body like a toga. "I need to shower. And Scorpius," she turned to him with appraising eyes and he hoped fervently that she was going to ask him to join her. "Get dressed," she commanded in a tone that dared him to argue before turning and flouncing into the lavatory.

Scorpius ran a hand through his messy blonde hair before making his way to his dresser. Thankfully his erection was gone by now and he was at perfect ease in his boxers as he dragged a pair of jeans up his legs and buttoned them up. "Seriously?" he asked with a sigh. "You really thought I was, what? Forcing myself on her?"

"What would you have thought if you heard what we did?" challenged Louis.

"I would have thought, 'damn, they're having some kinky sex in there, I'd better stay the fuck out.'" Scorpius replied as he pulled a t-shirt over his head.

"Yeah, well, before today I would have never put the terms 'Rose' and 'kinky sex' together in the same sentence," commented Louis.

"It smells like sex in here," James complained as he made a face.

"Hmm, I wonder why?" Scorpius mused sarcastically. "Perhaps because you barged into my bedroom the day after my wedding."

"Somebody's cranky," Al grumbled.

"It's because we just cock-blocked him," said Louis.

"No," Scorpius corrected, "it's because you just embarrassed my wife and accused me of abusing her."

"Well now we know," said James.

They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes before Rose emerged into the room. Her red hair was still very damp and she wore a comfortable looking pink cotton robe that Rin had supplied the lavatory with. "Now that I'm properly embarrassed," said Rose with a hint of anger. "What was so bloody important that you had to come barging in my bedroom the day after my wedding to ask me?"

"We're really sorry, Rose-"

"If we had known what was-"

"We never _imagined_ that you were-"

"If it makes you feel any better, I think that I'm scarred for life-"

They were all yammering on at once and Rose held up a hand to shut them up. They obliged immediately, used to this signal, and knowing if they ignored it she would start hexing them. "It's okay, you're all forgiven, but I really am curious as to why you're here."

"It's Roxy," said Fred with pleading eyes. "I'm really worried about her. I think, erm, that she might be pregnant."

"So why did you come here?" Rose snapped as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at them.

"Because you're her best girlfriend. We figured that if anyone would know the truth it would be you." Louis explained.

Rose seriously thought over their question. Fred was concerned, that much was obvious. She knew that they weren't seeking an answer because of selfish reasons, that they all really wanted to be there for Roxy if she was dealing with something so important on her own. But would Roxanne be mad at her for revealing her secret?

Scorpius made the decision for her. "Yes, your sister's pregnant," he said to Fred.

"What?" yelped Fred, sounding thoroughly shocked at having his suspicions confirmed. "But…but…" he rounded on Rose, "You told this git and not us?"

Rose looked just as surprised as the boys did. "I didn't tell him!"

"I could tell by the look on your face when they asked you," said Scorpius. "I could tell that you were debating on telling them the truth or not so I thought I'd make it just a bit easier on you. Now you've kept your promise to Roxanne but also stayed loyal to your best mates," he nodded his head towards the boys.

"How did you know all of that?" she asked in astonishment.

Scorpius tapped his temple lightly. "I pay attention."

"I'm going to be an uncle…" said Fred as he dropped down into an armchair by the fireplace. Then, with a look of delight on his face, he repeated himself. "I'm going to be an uncle! Come on, boys! To the Leaky Cauldron! Firewhisky shots on me!"

With a whoop all four boys scrambled to get handfuls of Floo powder from the tin on the mantelpiece. "Don't let her know that you know!" Rose screamed at them. "And be sure that if she does find out, you didn't hear it from me!"

"Yeah, yeah, Rosie, don't get your wand in a knot," James said with a smile. He moved to hug her, paused as he thought better of it, wrinkled his nose, and took a step back.

"For fuck's sake, _I took a shower_!" she scolded with a blush flooding her face again.

"Sorry," said James with an apologetic smile just as he disappeared in a swirl of green flames.

"Well," said Scorpius now that they were finally alone again. "That sure as hell killed the mood."

Rose giggled and turned to kiss his jaw. "Last night and today were wonderful, Scorpius. And you will be glad to know that I now feel a lot more comfortable around you."

That was when she remembered the article she had to turn in to _The Quibbler_. "I'm very happy to hear that," began Scorpius who was oblivious to the fact that her mind was suddenly elsewhere. "I was beginning to worry it would never happen."

"Shit!" she cried as she looked at the clock. "I bet they'll be leaving the office by three o'clock and it's already two in the afternoon!"

Rose hurried to pull more clothes out of her bags, which she had yet to unpack, and raced back into the lavatory leaving Scorpius gazing after her in confusion. Who? What office? And why did she sound like she had a deadline to meet?

"Where are you going?" he asked when she came back into the bedroom and pulled on a pair of shoes.

"To _The Quibbler_, I have an article I need to drop off for them to print."

"Oh, that's right! Merlin, I know you're a freelance writer, but what's the rush to get your piece in by three o'clock? It's not like you need the cash now," he gestured to the grand bedroom around them.

"First of all, if you think that I'm going to be content to live off of your fortune, you've got another thing coming," she poked him in the chest. "Secondly, I'm not, strictly speaking, a freelance writer."

"What do you mean? You told me that you wrote for _The Quibbler, The Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly_, and other publications…"

"Yes, and that's all true, but I have a weekly place in _The Quibbler_."

"I admit, I don't exactly read that magazine from cover to cover. Which pieces do you write?" he asked curiously, showing a very real interest in her work.

Rose bit her lip as she wondered how best to answer him. Could she keep a secret this big from her _husband_? Didn't he deserve better than that? She knew that if their roles were reversed, Scorpius wouldn't keep anything from her. Hell, he'd admitted that his grandparents wanted him to use her.

"I'm Modest Monica."

Scorpius blinked at her stupidly. What had she just said? But it couldn't be. "Surely, you must be joking," he said shortly.

"No, I'm being honest. I started the column in my fourth year at Hogwarts. I thought it would be a funny way to keep the wizarding world informed and entertained. Since then it just became this huge hit and I really enjoy writing it."

Timidly she brought up the piece she'd been working on that morning for his inspection. Scorpius read through it with raised eyebrows. It was humorous but not too invasive. She never actually insulted anyone and she was right, everyone he knew loved to read anything written by the mysterious Modest Monica. And he was married to her.

With a mixture of surprise and pride, Scorpius returned the parchment to her. "I love it."

"Really?" she asked with a big smile.

"Absolutely! This is hilarious. My wife is Modest Monica. Merlin's beard! I just realized! I was wondering how the heck she knew that I still have a pair of Hungarian Horntail slippers that I wear on occasion!"

Rose chuckled. "It was too cute to not announce to the public. Especially because they roar when you walk."

Scorpius scowled playfully, "I should never have told you about them."

Rose, still laughing, wrapped her arms around his middle. "It was funny and you know it."

"Yes, well, how about from now on you keep the highlights of your writing to your family?"

She beamed up at him and said simply, "You are my family now."

…

Scorpius accompanied Rose to the office of _The Quibbler_ where they handed in her latest piece to Leila. She invited the two of them on a double date with her and James and they set a tentative date for a few weeks into the future.

Then they had a good, yet late, lunch at The Leaky Cauldron where her cousins were still drinking themselves silly in celebration. "Honestly, it's the middle of the afternoon and none of them can hold their liquor," she reprimanded quietly to Scorpius as the two of them took a table in the back.

She was thankful that her cousins didn't even notice the two of them were there. When the meal was finished Rose took Scorpius back to the flat she had previously shared with Albus. "I want to get a few more of my things," she'd explained.

"Of course."

It felt odd that this wasn't her flat anymore, even though she'd only lived there for two months. Her bedroom was still almost full intact. After all, she had no need for any furniture at her new home. "We'll just take it all," Scorpius flicked his wand and every item in her room vanished, presumably appearing at Malfoy manor.

"Thanks," she said as she reached to hold his hand in her own.

Scorpius didn't think he'd ever been happier. This is what he'd wanted from the start. Rose was herself around him. She was finally showing him all sides of her personality and he couldn't get enough of it.

Her sense of humor had a wide range and her jokes could easily be witty, clever, crude, cheesy, intelligent, or dry. The intelligence he knew she had was multiplied significantly as she relaxed around him enough to occasionally rattle off a random fact she'd memorized.

Sweet Circe he didn't realize how naturally flirty she was because she had never really turned it on much around him. Now, however, her batting eyelashes, subtle innuendos, and soft caresses were driving him crazy.

Everywhere they went people recognized them and asked how they were doing, if the wedding went well, if they were happy together, and Rose handled every single person who approached them with a grace that came from years of practice handling strangers and the press.

Again he was proud and thankful of his choice for choosing her. Really nobody could have suited him better. As a Malfoy he was often in the papers and the public were always wanting to be up in his business. Because Rose was a Weasley she was very used to this and knew how to react.

He had taken girls on dates before where all they cared about was some paparazzi taking pictures of them together at an expensive restaurant. Not Rose. She was different, just as he knew she would be.

Finally back at home, he politely pulled her cloak from her shoulders and hung it on the coat rack by the door. "I have a surprise for you," he told her with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

"Oh?" she inquired.

"Well, more accurately, it's a surprise from your parents. For our honeymoon, they're sending us to France."

"France? I love France! For how long?" she was so excited that she was practically jumping up and down as she tugged on his sleeve.

"Just for a couple of weeks. We leave the day after tomorrow."

"What about Fred's wedding?" she asked as she paled. She couldn't miss such an important event.

"Heather demanded on getting married in Paris. We will already conveniently be there," he said as he ran his hands up and down her arms.

"This is so amazing! I can't wait!" Without any hesitation or embarrassment, Rose went onto the tips of her toes to plant a lingering kiss on Scorpius's lips and he knew then that he could do this. He could make her fall in love with him.


	17. The Other Side

**A/N: THIS IS AN IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE. I titled this chapter "The Other Side" because it shows the other side of the marriage law. So far we have (mostly) seen the good; James and Leila, Albus and Norah, Rose and Scorpius. But now we see the bad. **

**Also, I promised before that this story would not focus on other couples (i.e. Dom and Nathan, Fred and Heather, Roxanne and Calvin, etc.) HOWEVER this chapter, because it is Fred and Heather's wedding chapter, does have more Fred in it than normal. I hope this is okay with all of you. **

**I hope that this chapter doesn't offend anyone as it does contain infidelity, but I did touch on the subject in a previous chapter where Austin offered to take Rose home with him. There is a darker side to this law that I have not explored until this chapter. Please, as always, let me know what you think.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. If there really is a cereal called Cookie Crunch Bites then I do not own it, but as far as I know I made up the cereal because I wanted to pick one that doesn't actually exist.**

**WARNING: sexual content, language, and infidelity in this chapter.**

…

_As promised, my avid readers, I was in attendance at the wedding everyone is talking about. Apparently Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy don't do anything half-way. The elaborate ceremony and reception were held in Malfoy Manor and let me tell you, it was worth the risk sneaking in just to be there! Despite all of the controversy over the place, Malfoy Manor was actually surprisingly warm and welcoming. _

_The wedding was beautiful, as were the impeccably dressed wedding party. The only thing that kept the bride from being absolutely stunning is her horrendous inability to tame those atrocious red locks. Although the bride and groom both appeared to be calm and affectionate with each other, I could sense the slight tension. When they kissed for the first time as husband and wife, the new Mrs. Rose Malfoy blushed a deeper shade of crimson than her hair. Hopefully young Scorpius was up to the challenge that surely faced him that night!_

_James Potter was up to his usual antics, setting a table cloth on fire, spiking the pumpkin juice with firewhiskey, and hexing any guest who attempted to flirt with his wife. For any of you witches who still held onto a shred of hope that perhaps the infamous Potter playboy wasn't very attached to his wife, I'm afraid I have to completely obliterate your dreams. This boy is very happily taken and very happily whipped._

_Albus Potter is similarly smitten. Ladies, if you want any tips on how to tame your man, I'm sure Miss Norah Zabini or Mrs. Leila Potter could help! Those girls have their men wrapped around their dainty fingers. Albus and Norah are to be married on August 26__th__ and I think they are both looking forward to that day. They didn't let go of each other's hands the entire night. _

_Hugo Weasley was rumored to have confronted his new brother-in-law during the reception to politely remind him that he'd better 'be good to Rose – or else'. Nobody is more surprised than me to hear innocent little Hugo sound so badass, but it looks like he has some Weasley in him after all! Don't worry, ladies, he still has just over a year before he is subjected to this marriage law, so if you have your eye on him, he's definitely not taken yet._

_Oppositely, Lily Potter has made it shockingly clear that she is not available. Despite being of-age, her long-time boyfriend, Vincent Longbottom, has been legally allowed an exception to this law so he can wait another year for Lily to become 17. The two were caught snogging in four different locations during the Weasley/Malfoy wedding reception. Somebody find those lovebirds a room! _

_Overall, I would deem the night a success. Now we just have to wait and see if the marriage will be just as much of a success as the wedding. Love and sex are in the air, wizarding community, so be sure to go out with that special someone this week and have a great time!_

_Modest Monica_

…..

It was the second day of their honeymoon. Rose woke up slowly with a smile on her face. Until she realized what woke her. Scorpius didn't snore often. Only when he was sleeping on his back. Which was unfortunate because Rose loved cuddling on top of him and sleeping with her head on his chest.

"Wake up, sweetie," she purred. Scorpius mumbled sleepily but didn't wake. Another snore escaped him. "Scooorrrrrr, baby, wake up," she whined. Still only a slight response. "Wake the fuck up, you fucking git! Your fucking snores are making it impossible for me to sleep!" she yelled.

Scorpius jolted upright. "Wha-? Oh, sorry, love," he rolled onto his side and Rose snuggled into his embrace. For a few minutes.

"I'm awake now," she announced. "I can't fall back asleep."

Scorpius surfaced from his pillow with an amused smile tugging at his lips. "Have I ever told you that I find you most beautiful in the mornings? When I wake up and you're in my arms looking thoroughly ravished, I positively glow with pride at knowing that I caused it."

"You're only saying that because you're horniest in the mornings," she said haughtily but at the same time was filled with secret delight that he found her beautiful even before she showered and put her make-up on.

"No, I'm not," he argued. However his argument was proven invalid as Rose lifted the sheets and gazed pointedly down at the impressive erection he was sporting. "Well," he grumbled, "I can't exactly help that, it just happens."

With a giggle Rose squirmed until she was on top of him and kissed him. "What's on the agenda for today, Mr. Malfoy?"

He pulled out an official looking piece of parchment. Rose's mum had made an actual itinerary for the two of them that she expected them to follow; certain museum tours on certain days, restaurant reservations, concerts, plays, when they would visit the Eiffle Tower, even when they were allowed to retire for the evening. As thankful as they were for all the effort and money her parents had put into this extravagant honeymoon, the itinerary was just a bit much. Thus far they had done a magnificent job of completely ignoring it.

"Well let's see. It looks like breakfast at the hotel at 8am, then we have time to shop for souvenirs and walk around the city until 10am. Because at 10am we are supposed to be touring the Palace of Versailles. 1pm is lunch at Breizh Café. 3pm we have a walking tour that features 'hidden gems' of the city. Then there's a play at 6pm, a late dinner promptly at 10pm with reservations at yet another upscale French restaurant, and then bed at midnight."

"So in other words, sex until noon, walk around the city finding fun things to do until we get hungry, dinner at the first place we see, a nighttime stroll by the Seine, and then back here for more sex?"

Scorpius tossed the parchment over his shoulder. "Yes, pretty much." Rose threw herself into his arms and they disappeared beneath the covers.

….

Fred Weasley was sitting across the dinner table from his sister. Even though Roxanne was older than him he still felt like he was her _big_ brother. He was taller than her, broader, and he'd always been her protector. Except this was one thing he hadn't been able to protect her from. Was it even that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things? Probably not. He knew that Roxy would make a great mum. But he still felt like he'd failed.

"How's your chicken, Freddie, you've barely touched it?" Angelina Weasley asked as she eyed him with concern.

"It's fine, Mum. I'm just not that hungry I guess." He couldn't help but glance inconspicuously at Roxanne's stomach. Was it just his imagination or was there just a bit of a bump there that he hadn't noticed before?

"What are you looking at, fucking tosser?" growled Roxanne as she self-consciously tugged her baggy t-shirt down just a bit. Fred felt his throat tighten. How hadn't he noticed this sooner? It was so obvious to him now.

"Now, Roxy, is that anyway to talk to your brother?" asked George with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. He was insanely proud of both of his children and it didn't honestly bother him when they used that sort of language, but he still had to set a good example.

"I'll talk to the prat however I want," she snarled while pouring syrup on her chicken. George gave her a funny look and Angelina cocked her head to the side as if unsure of what she was seeing.

"Are you alright, dear?"

"Godric, Mum! I'm fine! Everything's fine!" Roxanne glared at her family while practically inhaling her syrup-drenched dinner. After a few tense moments, Roxanne said with sincerity, "I'm really sorry for snapping at everyone. I'm just under a lot of stress right now with the wedding and everything."

George's eyes narrowed at the mention of the wedding. He still didn't think it was appropriate for his daughter to get married at such a young age. Calvin wasn't the issue; he got along well enough with Roxy's family, George just hated how serious they were for being so young. Angelina was constantly reminding him, 'Think of how Harry and Ginny must feel with Lily only being 16 and so serious about Vincent.'

That hadn't helped. Now he just wanted to kill the Longbottom boy along with Calvin. Stupid fucking blokes couldn't stay away from his daughter and nieces. He'd always been of the opinion that Weasley genes were quite attractive and it was certainly not a good thing now.

"That's fine, sweetheart," said George with only a slight grimace. "We understand how hard this is on you."

Roxanne, suddenly mad again, threw her napkin down onto her empty plate, stood up abruptly and stomped off toward the stairs. The family had two houses; a country house and a spacious flat above the joke shop in Diagon Alley. The latter is where they were that evening, and Roxanne was headed for the stairs that would lead down to the shop, then presumably out the front door.

Before she reached the stairs, however, her foot caught on the edge of a rug and she started to fall right toward the stairs. "No!" Fred was across the room before his parents even realized something was wrong. He caught his sister awkwardly, but it was too late to prevent the fall entirely. With his body wrapped protectively around hers, he took all of the hard hits down the short flight of steps.

During the whole ordeal, Roxanne was barely jostled. "Are you okay?" Fred's voice was high, panicked, and their parents were now stampeding down after them to see if they were alright.

"Fred! Roxy!" Angelina cried, "What happened? Are either of you hurt?"

Ignoring them completely, Fred ran his hands over his sister's stomach, knowing without a doubt that there most definitely _was_ a bump. "Rox, _are you okay?_ Is the baby okay?"

"Baby?" George and Angelina echoed in unison.

Both of their children paled. "I'm fine," Roxy rasped, speaking to her brother, "but I should probably go to the hospital just to make sure," tears were sprinkling her eyes now and Fred hugged her tightly, still sprawled out on the floor at the bottom of the stairs with her body on top of his. His big sister. Perhaps saving his niece or nephew's life made up for his failure of protecting his sister. Perhaps he wasn't as big of a failure as a brother as he thought he was.

"Right," Fred hurried to lift his sister and barely noticed how sore he was. "St. Mungo's," he grumbled as he carried her toward the fireplace. He wasn't sure if pregnant women were supposed to Apparate or not.

"Hold on just a second!" yelled George. Fred turned, Roxy still in his arms, and raised a questioning eyebrow at their father. "Roxanne Georgina Weasley, are you pregnant?"

Biting her bottom lip, still crying, Roxanne said quietly, "Yes, Daddy, I am."

"Oh Merlin," he clapped a hand over his chest. "How…when…I can't…these kids, they're going to kill me, Ang," he said dramatically.

Angelina clucked her tongue at him. "Get your act together, George Weasley, we need to get your grandchild to the hospital."

"My…my…OH GODRIC! I'M NOT OLD ENOUGH TO BE A GRANDFATHER!"

"Get your arse in the fireplace, dear, you're starting to have a mid-life crisis in the middle of the storeroom."

Fred winked at his mum, knowing she could handle his father, and took his sister immediately to the hospital. As it turned out, Roxanne had been correct; she and the baby were both perfectly fine. Fred, however, had bruised his back pretty badly and injured his neck. With a few spells and potions they were ready to go back home.

"Where's dad?" asked Roxanne when they arrived back at the flat.

"He's at your Uncle Ron's house. Probably drinking. He's alright though, Roxy, honestly. He's just surprised. He'll come around. Trust me. He reacted exactly the same way when I told him I was pregnant."

"But that's different," whined Roxanne, who had always very much been a daddy's girl, "You two were married and-"

"No we weren't," Angelina chuckled fondly. "When I found out I was pregnant with you, George and I weren't even engaged. Now look at him! He couldn't survive without me!" she smiled at her daughter and enveloped her into a hug. "I've suspected for a while," she whispered. "But why the hell did you tell Freddie before us?"

"I didn't," Roxanne said with wide eyes. "He said that he overheard Cal and I talking about it last week."

"Well it looks like we have a lot more to plan for now than just a wedding!" as Angelina began to guide Roxanne toward the sofa, an owl swooped in and dropped a letter at their feet.

"It's from your father," she said with a sigh as she picked it up.

Roxanne read the letter over her mother's shoulder.

_Roxy, _

_I'm sorry for the way I reacted. I would come home to tell you this myself, but I'm so pissed I can't see straight. Ron's writing this for me. He told me I'm not allowed to leave until the morning and is kindly letting me sleep in Rose's old bedroom. When I come home in the morning we are going to start creating a whole new line of baby and mummy products for the shop! I'm going to be the best damn granddad in the world. My little grandbaby is going to be so spoiled you'll hate me for it. I love you. Tell your mum I love her, too. Oh! And Freddie. Love you all. See you in the morning._

_George_

Angelina grinned, "I told you so."

…..

Scorpius Malfoy looked down at his sleeping wife and started to feel guilt. Again. He'd been debating for a long time about telling Rose the truth about the marriage law. But she was finally starting to trust him. Maybe this was one secret he should keep to himself indefinitely.

They had such a good honeymoon so far. He didn't want to spoil it. Today was Fred and Heather's wedding. They would go, have a great time, then come back to the hotel. He didn't think he could ever get enough of her. Having sex with her was far beyond anything he imagined it would be.

She had a voracious appetite for it that made him feel desired and manly and he loved it. He loved her. They hadn't really spoken about their feelings for each other, but he had hopes that hers were growing. Without a doubt his feelings for her had grown since their wedding, and it had only been a week.

Each day they'd spent in Paris blended together into one long summer day that he never wanted to end. They were both so happy. How could she not love him? What else could he possibly to do win her affection? He'd spoken to Albus, just the previous night, and Al assured him that he was doing everything correctly when it came to winning Rose's heart. All he had to do now was sit back and wait.

Waiting was just so bloody difficult! He knew, logically, he was asking for a lot. He'd only been speaking to the girl for just over a month. It had taken her a few weeks to be open to the idea of being with him. A few more weeks to gain her trust. And now they spent all of their free time shagging. Maybe he should work on that. More talking. Less sex.

Bloody hell that was easier said than done! But he had an idea. An idea that he would employ as soon as they returned home from their honeymoon. He hoped fervently that it would work, or at least help, in making her love him.

Rose sat bolt upright gasping. "It was a nightmare!" she declared. Scorpius blinked at her in surprise. "It was just a nightmare," she repeated with a release of pent-up air.

"What was?" he inquired as he reflexively brushed her hair out of her face.

"I had this terrible nightmare that I missed Fred's wedding. He was so mad at me that he said I couldn't be the godmother of his future children and Roxy was so mad that I wasn't allowed to be the godmother of her child, either, and then Al told me that he was kicking me out of the flat and I wasn't allowed to live there anymore. I asked why and he told me it was because you ate all of his Cookie Crunch Bites cereal…"

Scorpius was trying very hard not to laugh. "I ate his cereal?"

"Yes, because you were there all of the time, you know, since we're married and all."

"So we were married but not living together?"

"Yes."

"Well don't worry, Rose, I wouldn't let you miss Fred's wedding. You still have several hours until we have to leave. Also," he leaned close and whispered, "I don't like Cookie Crunch Bites."

….

Fred Weasley didn't know what was worse. Keeping a secret relationship from his family and friends or going into a marriage with the knowledge that neither person in that marriage was going to remain faithful to each other.

Because that was the arrangement he had with Heather. Heather Kinder, his betrothed, was in love with someone else. But she couldn't marry him because like her, he was a muggle-born. Fred, likewise, fancied someone else, but couldn't marry her because she was pureblood. Like him.

Ophelia Bones was betrothed to Scorpius's best mate, Liam Jackson. Ophelia and Fred had been secretly dating for several months before the marriage law took effect. They kept it a secret for many reasons which now all felt so ridiculous. She was shockingly shy; moreso even than Norah, and she was terrified of being in the spotlight. Any girl Fred dated was always in the spotlight with him.

Fred wasn't good with commitment. At all. He was afraid that if he claimed publicly to being in a relationship he wouldn't be able to stick it out with all of the pressure. Not to mention all of the girls who followed him around. Each member of the Potter and Weasley families had plenty of admirers. Girls who fancied Fred seemed to be a bit crazier than girls who fancied his cousins. One time, while he was on a date with a girl, another crazy bird came running into the restaurant, completely naked, snogged him, and ran out.

He didn't want that kind of thing to happen while he was with Ophelia. She was special. They'd talked about their future and Fred didn't know if they would end up together or not, but they both agreed that if they ever got married, they would elope. Fred didn't tell anyone about her, not even James. Ophelia had been a year ahead of them in school. A beautiful Ravenclaw girl who was friends with his cousin Molly.

When he met up with Heather to talk about their wedding, they openly discussed that they were both in relationships with other people. Despite their marriage they would continue seeing the people they actually loved. Ophelia hadn't been sure about this at first as her fiancé, Liam, seemed to genuinely be trying, but in the end her heart had won over her head and she had agreed to keep seeing Fred in secret. However she refused to be in attendance at his wedding.

Fred didn't know if he would be able to go to her wedding, either. He didn't think he could handle watching the girl he loved be bonded to another man. A man who couldn't possibly love her the way he loved her.

Thus was the farce he was currently walking into. Heather looked beautiful, he could honestly admit that, and they were friends, so they could make this work, even if they weren't exactly happy about it.

The ceremony went by quickly and Fred found himself just going through the motions. At first he tried to imagine that she was Ophelia but that just made it feel even more wrong. Rose was there and he hadn't realized how much he missed her until he saw her. With a start he realized that she was different. Something about being married to Scorpius had changed her.

She was happier, she smiled more, she was more social, everything about her just radiated joy. He didn't think she was even aware of it. Scorpius was, though. He kept his eyes on her almost all of the time unless something else absolutely demanded his attention. Yes, Fred was confident that they would work out well together.

So would James and Leila; Albus and Norah; Louis and Verity; hell, even Roxanne and Calvin. But not him. Not Heather. Not Ophelia or Liam or whoever the bloke was that Heather was seeing on the side.

They were in some modern French reception hall that Heather had insisted on. Fred thought the extravagance of the wedding was more than ridiculous as they weren't even in a real marriage. At least, not real to them. He would take her up to their hotel room tonight and he would fuck her, for the sake of the marriage law, and she wouldn't like it any more than he would, and that would probably be the last time they had sex.

Unless the marriage law decided to take it a step further and demand children. He felt sick. The image of Ophelia having someone else's baby made it hard for him to breathe. That was when he saw her. And Merlin was she a vision.

Ophelia Bones entered the reception hall looking entirely unsure of how she got there. She was gorgeous and he wasn't the only bloke who thought so. Her hair was dark blonde, like the color of honey, and her eyes were an odd shade of greenish-blue. She had curves that were currently being shown off by the midnight blue dress she wore. It was a sleeveless number that reached her mid-thigh and hugged her body so tightly that Fred was surprised he wasn't drooling.

Her hair was pulled back into an elegant twist and she wore sparkly dangling earrings that drew your eyes automatically to her face. Which was perfect. On more than one occasion she was mistaken for a model while out in Diagon Alley.

She was looking around nervously, hoping nobody would notice her. She hated attention. Then her eyes locked with Fred's. Her Fred. She thought back to all of the time they'd spent together and her heart sped up. "Ophelia," he went straight to her. "What are you doing here?"

"I had to come," she whispered, blinking a few times to keep the tears at bay. "I couldn't not come to the wedding reception of my best friend."

Not caring who was watching, Fred hugged her tightly. She was his best friend, too. "Is it bad that a very selfish part of me is glad that you're here? And another very selfish part of me is glad that you chose to wear that particular dress. You look ravishing."

"I'm glad you think so because I rather want to be ravished," she flirted.

"Ophelia," he sighed, "it's my wedding night."

"It took a lot of convincing on your part for me to keep up this affair with you, Mr. Weasley," she whispered, her cheeks flushing red at her own words, "if you didn't want to go through with it then you shouldn't have worked so hard to change my mind."

Fred smirked. His feisty little Ravenclaw. "Forgive me, love, of course I'll ravish you. Just let me make an excuse to-"

"Don't worry about it," Heather was suddenly beside him, giving Ophelia a small smile. "I can handle our guests. You go do what you have to do, Fred."

Fred gave her a smile of gratitude and politely guided Ophelia out of the reception hall. "We don't have a long time," he told her.

"I know," she assured him. But she had to have him. They'd had sex many times before, it was true, but she had to be with him right now, before he was with Heather.

Fred looked around before pulling her into a small hidden alcove. He lifted her by the hips and pinned her against the wall. Ophelia moaned as he began to ravish her throat with wet sloppy kisses. "I want you so bad," he moaned.

"Fred, Fred, I need you," she told him desperately.

Knowing he would be missed from his own wedding reception, Fred quickly unbuckled his trousers and pulled out his already hard cock. He pumped it in his hand a few times before trailing his hand under her dress. "You naughty bird," he growled playfully, "coming here with no knickers on."

Ophelia shivered in delight at the lust in his voice. "Please," she moaned. Before she even finished the word, Fred bucked his hips forward and sheathed himself entirely in her. He put his hands under her knees to hold her up as he fucked her against the wall.

Ophelia gasped and panted as he fucked her fast and hard, both of them blinded with pure need. She knew that in a way she was just letting him use her body right now. Normally he took his time with her, loved her, made love to her, but tonight he just needed her tight heat wrapped around his cock and she was more than willing to give it to him.

Having her, taking her like this against the wall, knowing that she would always be there for him, even if they couldn't have their happily ever after, gave him the strength to do what he knew he had to do tonight with Heather. It gave him the strength to fake a happy front while he was with his family and friends. Ophelia Bones was more than the girl he loved; she was his strength and his greatest weakness.

"I love you," he told her huskily as his hips ground into hers. Ophelia cried out, seeing stars behind her eyelids, and with a few more quick thrusts, Fred followed, spilling himself deep inside of her.

He rested his forehead against hers and they slid down to the floor, her legs still around his waist, and his member still buried inside of her. As soon as he caught his breath, he chuckled and said, "Sorry about your hair," it was a mess from rubbing against the stone wall she'd been pressed up against.

Ophelia laughed, too. "It's a small price to pay. I love you, too," he kissed her with all of the passion he could muster. "Fred, about tonight…"

"I know, Ophelia, I know. I'll be wishing it was you the whole time."

…

"What day are we going home?" Rose asked as she turned her back toward Scorpius so he could zip up her dress. It was the day after Fred's wedding which meant that the date was now July 29th.

"August 3rd, the day before Roxanne's wedding, since you're her maid of honor and everything," Scorpius said as he brushed his lips against the back of her neck.

Despite the romantic gesture, he saw Rose frown. She looked…sad? "Would you like to go home sooner?" he asked.

"No! I mean…no, I don't. I'm having a great time here with you."

"But…?"

"No buts. It's…it's just that I've never celebrated a birthday without Albus."

"What?" Scorpius asked in confusion; whose birthday was it?

"Al and I were born a day apart," she hurried to explain. "As if he needed another thing connecting him to Uncle Harry, they share a birthday; July 31st. My birthday is August 1st. We were born exactly seven hours apart. We've celebrated our birthdays together every year."

"Rose!" he admonished. "Why didn't you tell me that your birthday was coming up? I feel like such a git! I haven't even gotten you a gift yet!"

"Scorpius, it's okay, calm down, you don't have to get me anything. Honest." She turned and stroked his face lightly. "You've been so good to me already. I don't need anything else."

"But I want to do something for you. I want to get you something or give you something for your birthday that will make you happy."

"Being here with you makes me happy."

….

Albus and Norah had decided that they would live in her flat after their wedding. Auror training started soon and Norah was working more and more frequently at the wand shop. The flat above Ollivander's would be better for both of them. Albus was already starting to move his things in.

Norah didn't mind at all. It made the place feel even more like home to see Al's shoes by the door, his cloak hanging in the closet, his toothbrush beside hers in the loo. Yes, Norah Zabini had it bad for Albus Potter. She just didn't think he had it as bad for her as she had for him. Out of all the people in the world, she could probably relate the best to Scorpius. Even though she'd not yet admitted to Al that she loved him, she did.

She hadn't told him because she knew he didn't feel the same way. And that was okay. Because, like her cousin, she was willing to wait and be patient and let him fall in love with her at his own pace.

"No way!" she snapped her head up to look at Al across the room when he spoke. She was currently sitting on the sofa, studying the wand in her hands, trying to tell just by looking at it what it was made of, what it's core was, and how long it was. Albus, on the other hand, had been addressing their wedding invitations.

"What is it?" she asked as she noticed the owl that had swooped into the flat.

"I got a letter from Scorpius! You'll never believe this. Here, I'll read it to you:

_Albus, _

_I know this might come as a shock to you, but Rose has just told me that her birthday is coming up. She also informed me that she has spent every birthday with you. As a gift for both of you, I would like to bring you and Norah out to Paris to spend a few days with Rose and I. You and Norah will have your own suite at the same hotel where Rose and I are staying and I'll take care of all expenses; food, room, even souvenirs. Just please come because I know it would mean a lot to Rose. Plus Norah has always wanted to visit France. Tell her that they have a wand museum here that I know she'll love._

_Hope you're both doing well,_

_Scorpius"_

Norah's face lit up as Albus read the letter. "Merlin's beard! I know what museum he's talking about! Gardy's Gallery! I've wanted to go there forever!"

"So I guess that means we're going to crash their honeymoon?" Albus asked with a laugh at seeing how excited Norah was. She was now rushing around the sitting room gathering all of the belongings she wanted to pack to take with them.

"Yes! We're going to France!"


	18. Mystery Bloke

**A/N: Due to some expressed interest in other couples and Heather's mystery bloke, I decided to write a chapter about them. Don't worry, after this chapter we'll jump right back to Rose and Scorpius on their honeymoon with Al and Norah! **

**Disclaimer: As usual, I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Very graphic sexual content in this chapter. Very smutty because, quite frankly, that's just how this couple is. Intercourse between a minor and an adult. Also, language, infidelity, and alcohol use.**

**IF YOU WANT TO SKIP THIS CHAPTER BECAUSE OF IT'S MATURE CONTENT, THAT'S PERFECTLY FINE! THERE IS NO SCORPIUS/ROSE, NO ALBUS/NORAH, AND NO JAMES/LEILA IN THIS CHAPTER. THIS CHAPTER IS NOT RELEVANT TO THE REST OF THE STORY. **

**This is just background information about Heather and…somebody else.**

…**.**

_**One year before the marriage law:**_

At the tender age of fifteen, Hugo Weasley could easily pass for eighteen. Years of playing Quidditch had divested him of every ounce of baby fat that still clung to many of his friends. He'd inherited his father's height and broad shoulders; his muscular frame was solid. He had a handsome face, deep brown eyes like his mother's, and a light reddish-brown shade of hair that he kept cut short.

It was the summer after his fourth year at Hogwarts. He'd just turned fifteen a week prior and was sitting now by himself at the Hog's Head Tavern in Hogsmeade. Normally he didn't go anywhere alone but today he had plans to meet up with some friends. After they'd parted ways, Hugo hadn't been ready to go home quite yet so he went into the pub that was owned by family friend, Aberforth Dumbledore, and had a bottle of butterbeer.

Heather Kinder stepped into the pub wearing a short sleeved pink shirt and a pair of jean shorts. She'd just been appointed a new job in Hogsmeade and after a long day of work she was ready for a couple of firewhiskey shots. As she glanced around the tavern, she noticed a couple of the usual creepy types and one wizard who stood out simply because he looked perfectly normal.

Okay, perhaps 'normal' isn't how Heather would describe him. He was above average in the looks department and he wasn't drinking his weight in liquor, which was what most people came in here to do. She took a seat at the bar a few stools away from him and kept glancing his way as she sipped at her drink.

The mystery bloke looked vaguely familiar to her but she couldn't quite place him. "I'm sorry," she said boldly, "but you look very familiar to me. Did you go to Hogwarts?"

Hugo was surprised the girl talked to him. He'd noticed her the moment she walked in because one normally did not see such a nice looking girl at a place like this. She was pretty, too, and that didn't escape his notice. She was tall for a girl but still much shorter than him, her plain brown hair looked thick and had a slight wave to it as it fell to her shoulders, and she had kind blue eyes that he had smugly noticed kept peeking at him.

The way she phrased her question made him uneasy. Most people recognized him and as he was a Weasley that wasn't exactly surprising. Not a day went by that he didn't thank the wizarding gods that he hadn't inherited the Weasley red hair. He could, occasionally, pass by unnoticed.

Even though he was still so young, he'd been with several girls. With his dashing good looks, all of the girls in his year had, at the very least, gave him looks of appreciation as he passed them in the halls. However, he was also loathe to note that most girls slept with him just because of his surname. He was famous. A Weasley. The son of two war heroes. Apparently those trifle little things turned girls on. For once in his life he wanted to be with a girl because she was honestly attracted to him; not his family or surname.

"Yes," he said politely.

Then came the question he was dreading, "What's your name?"

The cute girl was eyeing him innocently and he made a snap decision. "Trent," it was the first name that came to mind. A small part of him felt guilty for lying to her, but perhaps if things went well he would tell her the truth later.

"I'm Heather," she told him with a smile. "Which Hogwarts House-"

"Ravenclaw," he replied honestly and quickly. That was one thing he was exceptionally proud of. Most people associated Gryffindor with Weasleys.

"Oh, that explains why you look familiar but I don't exactly recognize you. I'm a loyal badger," she flirted.

Hugo blinked. This girl had to be at least a year older than him. Was she seriously interested in him? The idea made his mouth dry and he snapped his fingers for Aberforth to give him another bottle of butterbeer. He looked her up and down appraisingly and found that he liked what he saw. She had very nice curves and those shorts showed off her tanned legs.

"Here," he said as she finished off her drink. "Let me buy you another."

For a while the two of them talked about insignificant things; Quidditch teams, Hogwarts professors they liked or disliked, what their plans were for the summer, and Heather found herself for the first time in a long time actually enjoying the company of a guy.

She hadn't dated anyone in longer than she cared to remember simply because most men she knew were pigs. But 'Trent' was different. He genuinely listened when she spoke, and he was shockingly intelligent but also with a fun side. This bloke made her laugh and smile and flirt and her heart did a flip-flop when he leaned back in his barstool because the t-shirt he wore clung to his chest in a way that showed off his muscles.

Merlin, was she honestly considering shagging this stranger? Never in her life had she just went home with a guy and had a one-night stand. But he looked so damn good sitting beside her, smiling sexily, with a butterbeer in hand. Perhaps there could be one exception to the rule. Or perhaps whatever this was could blossom into more. An actual relationship.

Heather was hopeful. 'Trent' obviously enjoyed her company, he'd bought her two more drinks, and he hadn't done anything presumptuous like touch her. As a matter of fact, he was keeping his hands to himself in such a gentlemanly way that it made her want him even more for respecting her so much.

"Listen," he said with a look of hesitation. "I don't normally ask this, but I can't just walk away from you without at least giving this a shot, so, I wanted to ask if you would like to come back to my place?" That wasn't, strictly speaking, true. Teddy Lupin had a flat before he married Victoire and he'd kept it as a place for him and his friends to hang out and sometimes James or Fred took girls back there.

"I don't normally accept such offers," she said thoughtfully as she swirled the remnants of her third drink around in the bottom of her glass before downing it. "But for you I'm going to take a chance here. Yes, I'll go with you."

Hardly daring to believe his luck, Hugo politely paid for their drinks and escorted her to the fireplace. Aberforth never minded if Hugo or his relatives used the Floo network from his pub, nor did he care who they took with them. When Hugo arrived at the flat, he just managed to turn the lights on before Heather came tumbling out behind him.

His back was toward her and she swallowed thickly at seeing those broad shoulders as she imagined raking her nails down that lean back. At first Heather wasn't sure why exactly she'd made such a rash decision. She'd only known this stranger for a few hours and here she was at his flat with him. Obviously alone. Was this where he brought girls to murder them? Rape them?

As 'Trent' turned to face her with a timid smile her fears minimized greatly. Perhaps he was just a regular wizard who wanted to get laid. If that was the case then he was in luck because that was exactly what she planned on doing with him. Then, hopefully, if she discreetly left her number he would call her up sometime.

At the very least it looked like she would get a good shag out of this. Surely anyone with that body knew how to use it to please women. "Would you like anything?" he offered as he glanced not-so-subtly toward the bedroom, whose door stood ajar and butterflies filled Heather's stomach as she caught sight of a bed.

"Water would be nice," she told him. After three firewhisky shots she really should have a glass of water to keep herself from getting too tipsy. Hugo disappeared into the kitchen and Heather decided to take her chance. Very sneakily she stripped and left her clothes as a trail leading to the bedroom, where she proceeded to climb under the sheet and wait for him.

Hugo reappeared in the living room with a frown when he didn't see her. Had she changed her mind? Then he saw her shirt lying on the floor. A little ways after that lay her shorts. Then her knickers. Her bra. He gulped and entered the bedroom.

She grinned, bit her bottom lip seductively, and said, "I'll have that water later." He nodded, cleared his throat, and set the glass on the dresser. "Strip," she commanded. Hugo had never been more turned on in his life. All of the girls he'd been with before were just that; girls. Not Heather. Heather was a woman and Hugo was bound and determined to make her scream like one.

The girls he'd been with were all rather shy, self-conscious, and hadn't developed the womanly curves that Heather had. Again he wondered how old she was; sixteen? Seventeen? His cock twitched at the thought. Shagging a girl two years older than him. But this was more than that to him, wasn't it? He was more mature and intelligent than the average fifteen year old. Girls his own age bored him quickly which was why he never had a steady girlfriend.

But this girl, she'd kept him intrigued, she'd made him laugh, and she actually thought before he spoke which was a rare trait to find in a bird in his opinion. Obeying her sensual command, Hugo kicked off his shoes and socks, very slowly peeled his t-shirt over his head, being sure to ripple his muscles for effect, and dropped it to the floor.

Heather's breathing sped up as she watched him. Merlin she couldn't wait to get her hands and lips on those abs! It had been way too long since she'd been with a guy like this. She watched with rapt attention as his strong fingers undid his belt, button, and zipper. He dragged his trousers down his long legs before kicking them off to the side. As his hands slipped into the waist band of his boxers he quirked an eyebrow at her. She nodded and he pulled down the last article of clothing on his person.

Was she drooling? Godric she hoped not. But damn he was gorgeous! Every inch of him made her hot as she looked him over with hungry eyes. Teasingly he trailed a hand down, wrapped it around himself, and stroked hard a couple of times before strutting over to the bed and slipping under the sheet with her.

He groaned as he glimpsed her naked body. He tugged the sheet down to expose her breasts to him. His hand brushed across them and squeezed gently. She gasped and her hands started to run up and down his chest in a way that made him shiver as her nails circled his nipples.

Sweet Circe, if this is what shagging women was like then he would never shag girls his own age again. She was bold, sexy, and knew exactly what she was doing. Luckily so did he. Very gently he rolled his body on top of hers and kissed her for the first time. "You taste even sweeter than I thought you would," he whispered roughly and she shivered at his hot breath against her ear.

Heather sighed happily as he ran his hands up and down her sides, caressed her breasts, and finally trailed down between her legs. He rubbed circles around her opening before slowly probing her with two fingers. She let out a sharp cry of pleasure and pressed herself into his hand, bracing her own hands against the headboard for leverage.

Hugo stroked her, knowing just where to touch her from much practice, until she was gasping, moaning, and swearing. She was close. His fingers were wet and he knew she was more than ready for him by this point.

When he withdrew his fingers she made a whine of protest and felt him chuckle wickedly against her neck as he sucked on her skin there. His tongue was doing delicious things to her throat and chest as his muscular thighs parted her soft ones and the head of his cock brushed against her hot opening.

"Ready?" he asked sounding breathless.

"Merlin, yes," she pleaded as she rotated her hips against him. Hugo didn't need any more persuasion than that. He entered her in a slow stroke as he gritted his teeth together. He wasn't going to embarrass himself by cumming too quickly no matter how damn sexy she was.

"Shit," he growled when he found himself fully encased by her.

"Does that feel good?" she teased as she rotated her hips again, causing wonderful shards of pleasure to ripple through his body.

He grinned at her. "Very fucking good," he assured her before kissing her hard on the mouth. She gasped in surprise and met his hungry lips with equal fervor. As he began to thrust into her, Heather's mind blanked completely. She didn't think sex had ever felt this good before and she hoped very much that he felt the same way.

"Oh fuck!" her hands flew from the headboard to his shoulders, where her nails dug into his flesh when he gave a particularly rough thrust.

"Wrap your legs around my waist," despite being a low growl, his voice was still gentle. She did as he requested and found that he managed to get into her even deeper. That was what finally pushed her over the edge into bliss. Knowing that he was so deep inside of her, and watching the look of lust on his face as he pumped into her was just too much.

She screamed as she came and Hugo was filled with pride that he had accomplished his goal. As his peak approached as well, he asked breathlessly, "Are you on any type of potion?"

"Yes," she assured him. With a grunt he exploded inside of her with an orgasm more intense than he'd experienced before. He continued to thrust just a few more times before dropping himself onto his elbows, careful not to crush her with his weight, and flopped over onto his back beside her.

They were quiet for a while, just catching their breath, until Hugo wrapped an arm over her shoulders, letting her know that if she was one of those 'cuddle-after-sex' types then he was perfectly okay with that. What was it about this boy and his abnormally sweet gestures that had her so smitten? Most guys would be kicking her out the door by now.

"Tell me more about yourself," she found herself asking before she could stop the question from coming out.

Hugo grimaced slightly but figured what the hell? She'd already slept with him and she must like him at least a little bit to not be running for the hills by now. At least with her he could be sure that she liked him for him. His name wasn't important. "Actually, I have a confession to make. My name actually isn't Trent."

Heather sat up abruptly, fear evident in her features. "What? Why would you lie about that?" her voice had risen an octave in panic.

"Calm down, I swear that everything else I told you was the truth, but I lied about my name because, well, most birds just want to shag me because of my name. My family is, er, a bit famous."

Heather wracked her brain. His family was famous? The most famous wizarding families were the Potters and the Weasleys. But she'd never really paid much attention to them or been friends with any of them. The only Weasley she sort-of knew was Fred and that was only because she was working with him now at the Hogsmeade branch of his father's joke shop.

She tried to figure out who he was. What names had she heard before? There was a Louis Weasley but she remembered seeing him around Hogwarts and he was blonde. She didn't think he was a Potter because weren't both Potter boys in Gryffindor? Wait, Percy Weasley had two kids, but then again, she thought they were both girls.

Or just maybe she was jumping to conclusions and he was someone else. There were other famous families after all; the Longbottoms, the Woods, the Scamanders. "What's your name then?"

"Hugo, Hugo Weasley."

Heather's eyes widened. "Aren't you Rose's younger brother?" he nodded. "Oh Godric," she slapped a hand to her forehead. "I'm a slag. A pedophilic slag who just slept with a bloke who is…what? 15?" he gave a jerky nod of assent. "But…but why didn't you tell me?"

"I just told you," he answered with a creased brow, "because I wanted you to like me for me and not my surname."

"No! Not that! Your age!"

He gave an unconcerned shrug. "I didn't think it was important."

"Of course it's bloody important! Damn it! I'm going to go to jail! I just…I need to find my clothes," she moved to get out of the bed but Hugo's strong hand very gently wrapped around her wrist.

"Heather, calm down. You must be a muggle-born, yeah?" she nodded but glared at his assumption. "Wizards don't go by the same rules. There isn't an 'age of consent' for us. There can't be. So many purebloods still arrange marriages that it would be ridiculous. As long as we're both consenting then it's perfectly fine."

"But I'm…I'm going to be 18 next month! I just graduated from Hogwarts!"

Hugo resisted the urge to fist-pump the air in triumph. Despite the part of him that was secretly delighted about the fact that he'd just shagged a girl three years older than himself, he was too much of a nice guy to gloat about it. She was a kind girl and Hugo found that he genuinely liked her.

"Heather," he said evenly, "I know it's a little odd, and maybe just a bit frowned upon right now, but what's the big deal, really? You were having a good time with me and I was having a good time with you. I would really like to see you again."

She eyed him steadily in contemplation. He was right. "Fine, but this is only physical," she said quickly. "You fuck better than any bloke I've been with before and I definitely wouldn't mind a repeat of what just happened. However, I'm not going to date a bloke who can't even legally Apparate."

Hugo winced at the slight blow to his ego but he knew she was just being defensive. He knew that she liked him but was too afraid of the age difference to admit it. "Alright, that's fine by me. We're both free to date other people, and we'll meet up sometimes when we're in need of a shag. How does that sound?"

"It sounds like we have an arrangement, Hugo. But then, if you're still only 15, whose place is this really?"

"My cousin Teddy's. He doesn't live here, though. It's just sort a place for us blokes to hang out. Usually on the weekends we play cards and drink."

Heather slowly lay back down beside him. Listening to him talk about himself made her feel happy for some reason. She loved getting to know him better because as much as she didn't want to admit it, she wanted more than just something physical with Hugo Weasley.

….

The next few months passed by quickly and they found themselves meeting up at least three times a week at Teddy's flat. Normally it started with a drink or two, a conversation, lots of shagging, more conversations, then they would each go their separate ways.

Heather couldn't help but wonder if he was seeing other girls. She could just imagine Hugo bringing some other bint back to the flat, and shagging her just like he shagged Heather. Not that it was any of her business. She felt even stranger about it because she was friends with Fred now. They'd been working together at the joke shop for the past few months and she'd met more of Hugo's family.

Merlin help her, she really fancied him. A lot. He'd even been kind enough to get her a birthday present when she turned 18; a necklace with her birthstone (a ruby, for July). There were also diamonds around the teardrop-shaped ruby. Real diamonds. At first she hadn't wanted to accept the gift, but Hugo insisted.

Just one of many reasons why she liked him so much. He treated her with more respect than any guy had ever shown her before. He was already back at Hogwarts for his fifth year and she hated the idea of him in the castle with all of those other girls. She'd mistaken him for years older than what he actually was, what if others girls did the same but didn't care that he was only 15?

They had already agreed to meet up during Hogsmeade weekends. She lived in a small flat in Hogsmeade and they'd been frequenting her place a lot more often than Teddy's ever since she'd moved in. It was closer to her work and, if she were being honest, she liked feeling closer to Hugo while he was at school, too.

She grinned and waved to him from her window as she saw him approach, in his school uniform. His reddish-brown hair was longer than she'd seen it before and she immediately ran her fingers through it when he entered her flat. There was no conversation. It had been over a month since they'd last seen each other and they were anxious to fall into bed together.

Hugo had seriously considered dating other girls, but he didn't have a desire to. Heather was the only one he wanted and he was sure that given enough time he could convince her to be his official girlfriend. Before he even wrapped his head around what was happening he found himself naked, on his back, on her bed as she lowered herself onto him.

His stamina improved all the time as he got used to Heather and what her body felt like against his. However it had been a long time since he'd been inside of her. He couldn't take his eyes off of her as she rode him hard. He watched as his cock repeatedly disappeared into her womanhood in a fast rhythm.

He had one large hand splayed on her lower back, guiding her into his hips as he continued to thrust up and into her as she thrust herself down onto him. This was perfection. His other hand moved up to run through her hair. Godric he wanted to be able to call her his.

"Hugo!" she screamed his name, as she often did, "Hugo! Please!" He knew what she wanted and was happy to oblige. With one hand still on her lower back, he skimmed his other hand down her front to work her clit, where it was grinding against his pelvic muscles.

His fingers were surprisingly gentle as they touched her sensitive area with just the right amount of pressure. Hugo glanced up at her face as she threw her head back and her lips were parted in ecstasy as she panted. Her hands were planted firmly on his abs, using his body for balance and leverage.

She screamed as she came hard around his cock, but he wasn't quite there yet. Her entire body shook with the pleasure coursing through her that he had caused. When she was left breathless in it's wake, she dropped her upper body down so that her hands were on either side of his head and her tits were bouncing right in front of his face.

With a groan he lifted his head up to take a nipple into his mouth. She cried out and clutched the back of his head. The hand he had on her lower back moved to grip her hip firmly and his movements sped up. "Hugo!" he loved to hear his name wrenched so roughly from her sweet mouth. "Oh, Godric, I'm going to…"

His hips broke rhythm and slammed into her unexpectedly. She cried out a second time as Hugo emptied himself into her in hot bursts. This is what she wanted. It was what she needed. Not just on Hogsmeade weekends, but all the time. Hugo. Only Hugo made her feel like this; physically as well as emotionally. Still at the peak of her second orgasm, she cried out, "Oh fuck, I love you!"

As soon as she came down from her high she realized what she'd said and clapped a hand over her traitorous mouth. Hugo looked up at her, clearly surprised, and she hurried to explain. "I, erm, love what you to do me. That felt, uh, really great. I mean, I was so wrapped up in the moment, and-"

Hugo cut off her explanation with a passionate kiss. Heather pulled away from him, disentangled their limbs, and began pulling on her clothes. "Heather," he said warningly.

"No," she said, her back stiff as she faced away from him. "I'm not going to lie about this anymore," she spun toward him looking fiercely determined. "It drives me crazy to think that you could be fucking other girls. Damn it, Hugo, I want you all to myself, can't you see that? I don't want this," she leaned forward and grabbed hold of his cock, making him moan and his eyelids fluttered. "to be inside any other girl except me."

Hugo smirked up at her wickedly. "Alright, baby, if that's what you want, then that's fine by me, but the same goes for you. I don't want any other guy allowed to put his prick here," he gently stroked her wet opening. "Or any other part of his anatomy either. I want to be the only bloke who you allow to touch you like this."

"Okay," she agreed.

Hugo's grin widened. "Doesn't that make us, for all intents and purposes, an actual couple?"

Heather almost smiled. "Yes, I guess it does."

…..

Over the next several months Heather and Hugo found that they'd never been happier. He repeatedly snuck out of the castle to see her and they spent hours talking about everything. More time was spent in conversation than in bed and that pleased them both more than anything.

They would often argue about the latest articles in _Practical Potions_, a publication published by professional potioneers. Or discuss breaking news in _Transfiguration Today_. He would make fun of the way she always folded her knickers before putting them away, and she would roll her eyes whenever he would give her blow-by-blow accounts of his latest Quidditch match.

Until the day the letters came. Marriage law. Everyone seventeen and older was going to be married off to someone of opposite blood status. Hugo was about to be sixteen, but was still a year away from being seventeen. Then there was the complication that he was a half-blood and she a muggle-born so they couldn't be together anyway. Even if they applied for exemption.

Hugo was the one who officially broke things off between them. He said he just couldn't date a married woman. Then he'd fled the country. No wonder he hadn't been put into Gryffindor. He was a bloody coward. Trying to escape Heather and his feelings for her, he ran off to visit his cousin Louis who was working in Italy.

Louis knew that Hugo was depressed about something but had no idea what. He tried to help by setting Hugo up on dates and Hugo would go, but no girl was like Heather. They all talked too much about stupid things or they didn't smell right or their hair was too straight.

Simply put, he missed her. Because he'd fallen in love with her. When he returned home from Italy, he received a letter from her that contained shocking news. She was marrying Fred. Hugo knew they worked together, they were friends, and he was confident that they could make a marriage work even if it was a loveless marriage.

But the letter continued. Fred was in a similar situation as them. She'd told Fred that she was dating a muggle-born (slight white lie so Fred couldn't easily figure out who she was seeing). They had agreed that the marriage would just be for show. They could both continue seeing the people they really wanted to be with.

Hugo hardly dared to believe it. As much as he still hated this, he could deal with it so much better now. His relationship with Heather had always been a secret, now it was just going to be an even bigger secret.

They continued meeting up and dating while she made the arrangements to marry Fred. Hugo had to be at the wedding but thankfully was not in the wedding. He watched stoically as they recited the binding vows, snogged quickly, and became man and wife. Then came the reception.

Hugo had never been so drunk. All he knew was that he kept the firewhiskey's coming. He'd never seen Heather look so beautiful. It was killing him. He hated to think of Fred doing anything with her. He remembered with perfect clarity the look in her eyes when he told her he didn't want any other guy allowed to be with her the way he was.

They'd promised each other. But it didn't matter now. Nothing mattered now. Seeing that he was completely sloshed, Scorpius Malfoy had discreetly slipped him a sober-up potion, and Hugo drank it just because the vial was in his hand and drinking whatever was in his hand had become habit over the past hour.

"Care to tell me what's going on with you, mate?" Scorpius asked.

Hugo didn't know who else he could talk to. None of his cousins. Not any of his friends. But Scorpius…maybe he could trust his brother-in-law. But not here. Not now. Not when Heather was only a short distance away, smiling as she danced with James and entertained guests at her wedding.

"Can you keep a secret from everyone? Even Rose?"

"Of course," said Scorpius as he clapped a hand on Hugo's shoulder.

"Good. When you and Rose get home from your honeymoon, send me an owl."

Before Scorpius could reply, Hugo had sauntered away. He took his turn on the dance floor with Heather, being careful to keep an appropriate amount of space between them, but he did manage to discreetly catch a whiff of her perfume.

…

Heather was nervously wringing her hands together as the lift carried them up to the floor where their hotel suite was. She didn't know if she could go through with this. "It's alright," said Fred bracingly as he unlocked the door and led her into the hotel room. For the past year she'd repeatedly entertained the idea of becoming Mrs. Weasley and now it felt like some cosmic joke that she got her wish.

"Thanks for being so sweet about this, Fred," she said honestly.

"You too, Heather. It can't have been easy for you to encourage your husband to go shag his mistress during your wedding reception."

Heather gave him a thin smile, "It's because I'm about to ask that husband for a huge favor."

"What would that be?"

"After we…you know, consummate our marriage, would you mind very much if I went to…him?"

"Your boyfriend?"

"Yeah."

"Of course I don't mind, Heather. We're friends. Friends who have to shag. Once. Once and that's it."

"If you want to invite Ophelia over here for the night, I'm really okay with that. I know we're technically married, but you're right. We really are nothing more than friends no matter what label the Ministry puts on us."

"I just might," he sat down on a chair and sighed. "Well, how do you want to do this?"

"Quickly," she told him as she struggled to slip out of her wedding dress. Once she got it off, she was left in nothing but a white slip that reached the tops of her thighs. She shimmied out of her panties and Fred couldn't deny that she was beautiful. He just didn't see her as anything other than a friend.

"Are you on a potion, or should I cast a spell?"

"I'm on a potion," she told him shortly. Fred nodded, unbuckled his trousers, and slid them down to his ankles.

Heather moved to straddle him and Fred gave her a hesitant look. "You can't possibly be ready," he argued, but as his fingers found her core, he found that she was indeed wet. He gave her a wry smile. "Thinking about him?"

Heather gave him an apologetic grimace. "Just to get warmed up."

Fred nodded knowingly. He'd been thinking of Ophelia. She bit her bottom lip as she lowered herself onto him. Fred felt good inside of her, she couldn't deny that, but she also felt strangely empty. Hugo always made her feel full and satisfied, but with Fred she felt like something was lacking.

She rode him, knowing she wouldn't get off, until she brought him right to the edge. His body tensed and she lifted herself off of him and caught his fluids in her hand. She didn't want him to finish inside of her. "Sorry," he grunted.

"Don't be," she assured him. She pressed a kiss to his sweaty forehead. "thanks for being so understanding."

Fred nodded and watched as his wife washed her hands in the sink, pulled on jeans, a t-shirt, and strode out of the hotel room.

….

Hugo was throwing things. He could easily cast a _Reparo_ Charm to fix them later but right now all he wanted to do was smash things. He was at Teddy's flat because he felt closer to Heather here and he needed the privacy for the breakdown he was having.

"Hugo?" He spun around to find her clambering out of the fireplace. Her hair was still perfect and he gave her a questioning look. She looked down in embarrassment and mumbled, "we were quick."

Hugo shut his eyes tightly. He hated this so fucking much. If he could, he would gladly hex every witch or wizard who had a hand in creating this damn law. But when he saw that Heather was just as upset as him, probably even more, he went to comfort her. She'd just let another bloke shag her because of a stupid law. She must feel at least a little bit violated.

His strong arms wrapped around her and carried her to the bedroom. He took the time to kiss her all over her body as he undressed her. She needed to know that he didn't blame her. That he still loved her; still wanted her. His lips were hot against her cool skin and Heather willed all thoughts of Fred out of her mind as Hugo made love to her.

When he finally entered her she felt like she might shatter into a million pieces. She felt so overwhelmed by the emotions coursing through her. She never wanted this to end. "Did he make love to you like this?" Hugo asked breathily. Heather shook her head.

"Did he kiss you like this?" his lips captured hers heatedly. Again, she shook her head 'no.' "Did he cum inside of you?" he asked in a whisper.

"No," Heather looked straight into Hugo's warm brown eyes and said sincerely. "Only you, Hugo, only you."


	19. Comfortable

**A/N: As a result of the continued interest in Fred/Heather, Heather/Hugo, and even Fred/Ophelia, I will include a bit more of those couples in future chapters. The first part of this chapter was difficult for me to write because the first part is mostly filler. It's the second half of the chapter that progresses the plot the most. **

**Your continued interest in this story is what keeps me updating so quickly. Whenever I receive new reviews/favorites/follows it makes me excited to keep writing! **

**For those of you who are wondering when Rose will find out that Scorpius chose her, I can give you a rough estimate. I THINK she will find out in chapter 23. Give or take a chapter.**

**If you have any questions about the story, be sure to ask and I will do my best to answer it either in an author's note or in the story itself. Unless, of course, it would be a spoiler. **

…**.**

"Happy birthday!" Rose's eyes flew open to find Scorpius hovering over her, a big goofy grin on his face.

"You're lucky I'm not one of those girls who punches you in the face when you startle her awake, and tomorrow's my birthday." Rose scowled.

"Like you could hit this beautiful face. And I know it's tomorrow, but I'm celebrating it today." he waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Somebody's in a good mood today," she speculated.

"Yes, I am! Because we are going to celebrate your birthday and your present has just arrived!"

"Oh Godric, if your present is sex, then hold off for another hour, okay? I'm exhausted," Rose went to roll over but Scorpius flattened his body on top of hers so she couldn't move.

"Sex isn't a present. You can have that whenever you want it. I actually put some thought and effort into your birthday gift. So, if you wouldn't mind too much, get your sexy arse out of bed and put some clothes on."

"I never thought I'd hear you say those words," Rose wiggled under him, the friction causing the reaction she was hoping for. He glared down at her.

"Don't make me wrestle you into some clothes, Mrs. Malfoy."

"You really like calling me that, don't you?"

"Yes, I absolutely do. Now come on," he whined as he slid down her body and gripped her ankles. "Up you get!" he tugged her body down the bed until she fell off the end and into his arms. Thankfully she was wearing a pair of panties and a t-shirt. Despite everything, she still wouldn't say she was 100% comfortable being naked in front of him.

"Scorpius!" She was giggling like mad as he pulled a pair of her trousers off the floor and began to wrestle them onto her kicking legs. "I can get dressed myself!"

"You were taking too long. Ouch! Shit, woman, do you want me to be able to shag you tonight? Stop digging your heel into my crotch!"

"Oops! Sorry, Scor." She stopped struggling long enough for him to get the pair of jeans on her and done up. He tapped his chin thoughtfully as if something was missing.

Without warning he wrenched the t-shirt off of her. Rose squealed and covered herself with her hands. "Where's a bra?" he grumbled as he shuffled hastily through one of her suitcases. Finally he seized one, a black one and dropped her unceremoniously onto the bed.

"I really can do this all by myself," she tried again, but Scorpius shook his head and continued dressing her.

"These are so much easier to take off than to put on," he noted as he somehow managed to clasp the bra. "Now you just need a top. Oh, I like this one on you," he pulled a loose white off-the-shoulder shirt out of her bag.

"I can't wear that one."

"Yes you can, arms up!" Knowing it was no use to argue, Rose huffed as she lifted her arms and Scorpius pulled the shirt down onto her. "Hmm. This isn't going to work, is it? I can see your bra right through it."

"Told you," she eyed him haughtily.

Scorpius gave her the cocky smirk he was famous for at Hogwarts. "Well, love, I have to hand it to you witches. I don't know how you manage to get ready every morning. Hurry up and find a suitable top then meet me in the sitting room."

He abruptly turned and left. Rose smiled at his retreating figure before shimmying out of the sheer shirt and pulling on a plain blank tank top. She accented it with a scarf, ran a brush through her hair, sprayed some perfume, and emerged just a minute after Scorpius had left the room.

"Bloody hell, how do you do that?"

"Practice, lots of practice. Now where's my present? You didn't buy me the Eiffel Tower, did you?"

He looked up at her sharply and asked very seriously, "Did you want the Eiffel Tower? I'm sure if I asked my dad to make a few calls, I could work something out with-"

She put her finger over his lips. "If you bought me the Eiffel Tower I wouldn't have sex with you for a month. I wouldn't care if you didn't get me anything, but since you obviously already have, I am very eager to find out what it is."

Giddy with glee, Scorpius twined their hands together and pulled her out of the hotel room. "Should I grab my purse?" she asked, moving to turn back toward the room.

"No need, we're not leaving the hotel."

"But where…" Scorpius stopped outside of another hotel room, just down the hall from theirs. "Oh Merlin, Scor, if you got us a second hotel room just because you could-"

He clucked his tongue at her. "Stop guessing, you're rubbish at it." Then he rapped lightly on the door.

It was wrenched open from the other side where Albus and Norah stood, wearing matching grins. "Surprise!" they yelled. "Happy birthday, Rose!"

Rose screamed incoherently and pulled them both into a hug. She was nearly in tears as she released Norah but continued clinging to Al. "I'm so glad you're here!"

She let go of Al so quickly that he almost fell forward. Then she was on Scorpius; hugging him, kissing him, running her hands through his hair. Each word she spoke was punctuated with a kiss, "Thank – you – so – much!"

"Down there, Rosie," Albus teased as he wrapped an arm around Norah's waist. "I know you're still on your honeymoon, but could you keep your hands off of him for just a bit so we can spend some time with you?"

Rose blushed crimson. The past week she hadn't really been around anyone except for Scorpius, aside from attending Fred's wedding, and she'd gotten exceptionally comfortable around him and showing affection for him. If she took the time to think about it, she would be shocked at the difference a week made.

…..

"I miss Rose," James was dragging his broomstick through the sitting room where Leila sat going over the latest _Daily Prophet_. He'd just come trudging in from practice and was tracking mud on the carpet.

"Clean that up," Leila mumbled as she turned the page. With a sigh James twirled his wand and vanished all of the mud.

"Are you even listening to me, Lei?"

"Yes, you miss Rose. Did you know that Al is in Paris with her?"

"What?" James screeched in a tone dripping with anger at being left out.

"That's what it says here in the _Prophet_. Apparently some reporter saw Albus and Norah arrive this morning and managed to get it printed before the paper was distributed today."

"That's not fair! I want to go to Paris!"

"No! Absolutely not! James Potter, you wipe that look off of your face right now!"

"What look?"

"That…that…'I'm going to crash Rose's honeymoon' look!"

"Psshh, that is not my look, darling. My look is 'I'm going to take my beautiful wife to Paris tomorrow because I love her and she deserves a vacation.'"

Leila blinked at him skeptically. "This is a very bad idea, but I am afraid that I must concur with you, dear husband. Your gorgeous wife does deserve a vacation to France."

James beamed, savoring the taste of victory. "Then we'll pack tonight and take a Portkey first thing in the morning."

…..

Rose and Scorpius had been in the city long enough that they'd already seen and done everything they wanted to see and do. Now they were just showing Albus and Norah around. "There it is!" squealed Norah.

"Merlin, you're strong for a woman," Albus grumbled as she hauled him toward the wand museum that was her main motivation behind wanting to come to Paris. Scorpius and Rose followed at a slower pace.

It hadn't escaped Al's notice that Scorpius kept an arm over Rose's shoulders the whole day. Rose, likewise, kept her arm around his waist. Hardly anybody in the world knew Rose as well as he did, and he could tell from once look that she was falling for Scorpius. He wondered if she realized it yet herself.

Even with these interesting thoughts on his mind, he managed to focus mainly on Norah. He got the impression that she hadn't been on many family vacations and hadn't traveled much. Everything seemed new and exciting to her.

"This is heaven," she sighed as she leaned so close to an exhibit that her nose was almost pressed against the glass. The wand in the case had a plaque saying that it had once belonged to Andros the Invincible.

"Did you know," rattled Norah, sounding very much like Rose used to sound when she was in class at Hogwarts, "that Merlin used to make wands? Apparently wandlore was fascinating to him and he found it to be the only branch of magic that really challenged him. Gardy's Gallery is said to contain the world's largest collection of wands fashioned by him personally. I wonder if they have those out on exhibit?"

"Yes, they do," Rose said crisply as she consulted a pamphlet the welcome wizard had given her when they entered the museum. "It looks like it's in that room over there," she pointed toward an archway that led to another part of the museum.

Norah gave a very girlish squeal and ran toward the room. "She's so excited," noted Rose happily.

"Yes, I think Al is really good for her."

"I think she's good for him, too."

"They're both just so…"

"…abnormally sweet," Scorpius and Rose looked at each other and started laughing as they realized their thoughts were the same.

There was a comfortable pause between them as they watched Albus and Norah tour the museum. Scorpius reached for her hand and frowned when he felt her instinctive flinch. She'd been doing so damn well since the wedding but when she went too long without showing affection for him, it became slightly uncomfortable for her again.

Before he could even become aggravated by her reaction, she rectified it by twining their fingers together tightly. He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it softly. Rose smiled but didn't look at him.

….

After Gardy's Gallery they took a horse and carriage tour through parts of the city, had a late lunch, took a special wizard-only tour through some of the magical parts of Paris, did a bit of shopping, ate dinner, and then went to celebrate Al's and Rose's birthdays.

They had cake and butterbeer on the roof of the hotel while gazing at the city lights. "I don't think I've ever had a better birthday," Al mused as he leaned forward to lick a bit of chocolate icing off of the corner of Norah's mouth.

"You know, Al, I was just thinking the same thing," Rose sighed and snuggled back contentedly into her husband's chest. Scorpius was sitting on a blanket they had brought up to the roof with his legs stretched out in front of him. Rose was laying right beside him, leaning into him, and he found the warmth of her body to be comforting.

"There is just one thing that's missing," Albus said this very innocently but Scorpius felt Rose stiffen in his arms.

"Now, Al, if you're thinking what I think you're thinking then you'd better stop that thinking right-" her words were cut off when a large piece of chocolate cake hit her square in the face.

"Traditional birthday food fight!" Albus screamed as Rose scrambled to get her hands on something to fling back at him. Before he had time to duck, she managed to get a whole glass of butterbeer poured over the top of his head. With a flick of his wand he multiplied the amount of cake they had left and Scorpius and Norah joined in, not knowing what else to do.

The four of them ran around the roof shrieking, throwing cake, sloshing butterbeer, and tackling each other until they were all covered in the remnants of the birthday dessert. "Next time can we do teams?" Rose requested as she dragged icing through her messy hair.

"Next time?" asked Scorpius looking aghast.

"You've never been to a Weasley dinner yet, have you?" Albus winced in sympathy and patted Scorpius's shoulder in consolation. "There's always a food fight. Sometimes we choose teams. Rose and I are always on a team because we guard each other's backs, and James always picks Lucy because even though she's tiny that girl can _throw_."

"What about the adults?" Norah asked in confusion. Didn't their parents put a stop to this?

"Uncle Ron has excellent aim, but he's a sore loser. Aunt Hermione never participates but she's always shouting directions to her husband. Grandad sometimes grabs an empty to plate to shield his face and continues eating like normal. My mum usually joins whichever team my dad isn't on because I think she secretly gets enjoyment out of throwing things at him in a fit of rage-"

"I meant, they let you act that way?"

"Let us?" Al laughed, "They are normally the ones who start it! Well, Uncle George does anyway. And Uncle Bill."

"Rose?" Scorpius sounded very serious and Rose turned to him questioningly. "Please tell me that I'm never invited to any family dinner of yours. Ever."

She beamed at him. "Actually, you are supposed to accompany me to every single one."

"How often does your family get together like that? Holidays?"

Rose's smile turned devilish. "Every weekend, except recently because of all of the weddings and whatnot. Once everything settles down we'll start having them every weekend again."

"Oh, Rose!" Al said excitedly, "think about all of the new people that will be there! We'll probably have to build bigger fortresses!"

"Fortresses?"

"Yeah, they're not just for food fights, though. We have water fights in the summer, snowball fights in the winter, but no matter what time of year it is you have to watch out for Louis because he'll cheat and start throwing gnomes or Gran's chickens."

Norah giggled in amusement before catching the look of trepidation on Scorpius's face. "Still glad you got stuck with Rose?"

Although he continued to look scared at the idea of flying poultry hitting him in the head, he replied sincerely, "Absolutely."

….

Albus and Norah were snogging heatedly in the hallway of the hotel, not even making it into the room yet. "Perhaps I should have booked two separate hotel rooms for the two of you," Scorpius said with a glare.

Al gave him a mischievous smirk and said, "That would be a waste of money as one of them would remain unoccupied for our entire stay."

Norah blushed and playfully punched his shoulder. "Listen, Potter," Scorpius began with a finger pointed threateningly at Albus.

Rose interceded. "Darling?" she stretched up to kiss Scorpius's jaw. "You know that wine you like so much that the hotel has? I was thinking that after I take a quick shower I can pour it all over myself and let you clean it up with your tongue."

Scorpius almost dropped to his knees in shock and elation. _This_ was the side of Rose that he'd always suspected was there. _This_ was the feisty vixen he'd caught glimpses of over the past month. _This_ was the witch who made him want to fall at her feet and beg her to have sex with him.

However, no matter how much she tempted him, there was a slightly more pressing issue at the moment and Scorpius could sometimes be too logical for his own liking. "You're trying to distract me, witch," he growled.

"Is it working?" she widened her eyes innocently and twisted her fist into the front of his shirt, ignore the chocolate that was smudged there.

"Yes…no!...Okay, maybe just a bit, but I'm not done thoroughly intimidating your cousin to get him to keep his hands off of my cousin!"

"Now, Scor, let's be fair here. Did you keep your hands off of me before we were married?"

"Yes!"

"Oh really?"

"Rose, I think I would remember. You drove me absolutely crazy waiting for you to be ready."

"Ah-ha! So you were waiting for me to be ready?"

"Of course."

"If I had been ready _before_ the wedding, would you have had sex with me?"

"If you had been ready before the wedding I would have had you in my bed before you could say 'Quidditch.'"

"Exactly my point. I'm sure that Albus has been a perfect gentleman. I'm sure that he hasn't made any unwelcome advances toward Norah. If she wants him, and he wants her, then that's their business."

"But…but…_she's like my little sister!_" Scorpius whined.

"And Albus fancies her very much. He respects her. He genuinely cares about her. You couldn't have found a better bloke to be with Norah. Just look at them!" During Rose and Scorpius's argument, Albus and Norah had returned to snogging and Albus now had her pressed against the hotel room door with one arm around her waist and the other fumbling with the room key trying to get the door unlocked while keeping his focus on the girl in his arms.

"Well damn," Scorpius grumbled. "Let's get away from here before I start throwing hexes at him." He begrudgingly began following Rose down the hallway to their room. "Were you serious about the wine thing?"

Rose said nothing as she turned and shot a positively wicked smile his way.

….

"You are a goddess," Rose woke up to having these words whispered in her ear as large familiar hands stroked her sides, creeping up under the t-shirt she'd worn to bed.

"Mmm, good morning," she replied as she turned her head to kiss him.

He pulled back just enough to say, "Happy birthday," before letting his lips meet hers again. The kissing became hotter and hotter until they were both panting and grinding against each other through their clothes. Rose was physically shaking in anticipation and desire.

"Aren't you…" a ragged breath left her as he sucked on the skin below her ear, "…tired of this yet?"

"Rose," his low voice rasped, "I will never get enough of you like this. I will never get enough of hearing you say my name while I'm giving you pleasure. I will never get enough of feeling your body wrapped around mine."

He was going to continue his eloquent speech but the woman beneath him put a stop to it by pulling his face down to hers again. "You're too good to me," she told him. "I don't deserve you."

This caused him to pause and sit up. "Do you really think that?"

Her chest was rising and falling rapidly as she attempted to catch her breath. "Of course I do."

Scorpius shook his head. "You are positively barmy."

Before Rose could reply, there was a knock on the door and a male voice called, "Room service!"

Scorpius groaned in disappointment as he eyed the flushed look on Rose's face. "We didn't order room service!" he called back, trying to get the hotel worker to leave them alone so he could ravish his wife some more.

"It's a complimentary breakfast in honor of Mrs. Malfoy's birthday!"

Scorpius and Rose both looked confused. Had Albus told the staff that it was her birthday? He rolled off of the bed and trotted out of the bedroom, through the sitting room, and opened the door. "James?"

At hearing that name, Rose sprinted into the sitting room of their hotel suite, forgetting that she was wearing her knickers and an old t-shirt. "Bloody hell, Rosie, put some trousers on!" James and Leila Potter were standing just inside the hotel room as Rose rushed in. With scarlet-tinted cheeks she retreated to the bedroom, tugged on the first thing she could get her hands on, and returned.

"Really?" James blinked at her slowly. She glanced down to see that she'd pulled on a pair of Scorpius's boxers which reached her mid-thigh. She gave him a carless shrug.

"Look who's talking. What in the name of Merlin's most baggy y-fronts are you wearing?" James was dressed in an attire one might find a tourist on a tropical island sporting. He had a flowered Hawaiian shirt, khaki shorts, socks with sandals, and on his head sat a giant straw hat.

"Leila said 'vacation' and I thought I'd better dress the part!"

"Be thankful I talked him out of the bum bag," Leila muttered.

"What I'm thankful for is that he actually knocked this time before barging in," Rose said with a roll of her eyes.

"Oh, he tried, but the door was locked and _alohamora_ wouldn't work on it."

"James!"

"What? I wanted to surprise you!"

Rose slapped a hand over her forehead and shook her head. Sometimes her family drove her insane. But she wouldn't trade any of them for the world.

…..

The six of them spent the next couple of days doing the traditional touristy things as James insisted on being as 'authentic' as possible. Rose was of the opinion that he wasn't sure what the definition of 'authentic' was, but James thought they were blending in smashingly to French society.

At first Scorpius had been unsure of having so many members of her family around for their honeymoon but it actually worked in his favor. She was already used to showing her emotions around him when they were alone together, and she was becoming more comfortable with showing her feelings for him in front of her family.

It was their last night in Paris and the three girls decided to go out and catch a performance of an Opera. The boys had quickly opted to stay at the hotel and maybe play some cards or _Avada_ each other. You know, whichever got them out of going to the Opera.

"So how is married life, Scorp?" James asked as he shuffled the deck of cards and began to deal.

"Good. I know we're still on our honeymoon but I'm happy and I think Rose is, too."

"I've never seen her like this before," Albus commented.

"What do you mean?"

"She never shows her true self around people other than her family. It's one of the effects after…well, you know," Al winced, not wanting to bring up the story from Rose's past again if he could help it. She'd been hurt by too many people in too short of a time for it to leave her unscathed.

"There must have been at least a few others?"

"Not unless Teddy counts," said James seriously. "For the longest time Al, Fred, Hugo, Louis, Roxanne, and I were the only ones who knew the true Rose. But during this vacation I caught her teasing Leila about our sex life, offering Norah advice on how to cook Al's favorite dishes, and she's been more relaxed around you than I thought possible."

"Those are all good things, right?" Scorpius asked as he picked up his cards and arranged them in his hand.

"Very good, but very odd," said Al. "I just hope that she keeps it up."

…

Fred and Heather moved into their new house together. It was small, but cozy, and it had been a wedding gift from Fred's parents. Heather didn't want to accept it, especially since she was technically cheating on their son, but Fred had assured her that it was alright.

They decorated it together and sorted through all of their wedding presents. "Let's look at it like this," said Fred as he grimaced at a particularly ugly vase and shoved it back into the box it had come from. "We're two friends who are roommates in a house."

"Yes, I like that. Mates. Sharing a house," Heather nervously tucked her hair behind her ear as she wrote down names of people who had sent them presents so she could mail them thank-you cards later.

"Heather," Fred sighed. "I know you're uncomfortable with all of this. I am, too, but if we just pretend like we're not married, I think we'll both be a lot happier. The Ministry forced us to take marriage bonds and to consummate the marriage. But how we choose to live our lives is up to us."

"So what you're saying is that nothing between us is going to change?"

"No, not at all. As a matter of fact I was going to suggest that you keep your flat in Hogsmeade. I think that you should probably live here, with me, but if you want a place to meet up with your boyfriend, then your old apartment is ideal."

"That's a good idea," she agreed. "I wouldn't mind if you brought Ophelia over here. Fred, I'm serious about this. I think of you as nothing more than a very good friend. If I were to come home one evening and find you and Ophelia cuddled on the couch watching the telly, I would probably say hello and offer to make you some popcorn. I know you're dating her. There are no official attachments between you and me as far as I am concerned."

Fred nodded. "But there is one thing that I want to change."

Heather's head snapped up to look at him. "What?"

"As much as we don't feel like it's true, we _are _married. You are my wife and I'm going to take care of you. Heather, if you need anything, please let me know. I am your husband. I will do my best to provide for you and take care of you. We both know that I'm in love with Ophelia, but the reality of it is that she's my, erm, mistress. You, as my wife, have to be my first priority. Okay?"

Heather gave him a sad smile and reached a hand up to stroke his face. "Thank you, Fred, that really does mean a lot to me. The same goes for you, too. I'll do what I can to be a good wife to you."

"Thanks. After all, what are friends for?"

…..

Scorpius and Rose arrived back at Malfoy Manor the day before Roxanne's wedding. Rose tried on her bridesmaid dress, unpacked their suitcases, and was just starting to relax when Draco and Astoria entered the parlor in which she was sitting.

Malfoy Manor felt foreign to her. It most definitely did not feel like home. Therefore she was going to do her damn best to get comfortable in every fucking room in this mansion. She was curled up on a sofa with a book in hand, getting ready to delve into it.

"Rose! We're so glad that you and Scorpius are home!" Astoria hugged her and sat down beside her. Draco began to pace.

"Is everything alright?" Rose asked skeptically.

"Of course," Astoria's smile was brittle.

"We received an owl today from Azkaban prison," Draco began without preamble. "There is a prisoner there who wishes to speak with you. He has requested that you come alone and that you are open minded about what he has to say."

Rose didn't need to ask because she already knew the answer. "Nathan?"

"Yes, Nathan."

"What does he want with me?"

"Nobody knows."

"Is that even legal? Am I allowed to visit him while he is in Azkaban?"

"There are certain restrictions in place, but none of them apply to you. You see, the prisoners are allowed visitors as long as they meet the following criteria," Draco pulled a rolled-up piece of parchment out of his pocket and unfurled it to read the rules. "_The visitor must be a relation to the inmate_," Draco paused to explain, "Since you married Scorpius you are now Nathan's cousin-in-law, thereby making you a relation to him. _The visitor must not have a criminal record_. I am assuming that your record is as spotless?" she nodded. "_The visitor must be at least seventeen years of age. The visitor must make an Unbreakable Vow upon arriving at the facility that he/she will not help the prisoner to escape. The visitor must present his/her wand for inspection upon arriving at the facility. The visitor must be cleared with the Head of Auror Office, Head of Magical Law Enforcement, and Head of Azkaban Prison._"

"That's it?"

"It goes on to list various items that you are not allowed to have on your person upon entering his prison cell, but yes, that is the jist of it," said Draco shortly.

"There's no law saying that you have to go visit him just because he asked you to," said Astoria quickly.

"Write them back and tell them that I'll go. I agree to all of the conditions."

"No," Scorpius entered the room with a fierce scowl. "I don't want you anywhere near him again."

"Scorpius, there will be guards there. I'll be perfectly safe."

"I don't like it," Scorpius growled. "This feels wrong. What if he tries to take you as a hostage in exchange for his release?"

"That's impossible, son," said Draco. "He has no carnal weapon, no wand, and it would be impossible for him to perform wandless magic."

"Why impossible?" asked Rose curiously.

"Ever since they got rid of the Dementors who used to guard the prison, they enchanted each individual cell to drain the witch or wizard within of all magical power. It used to be that when people visited Azkaban, the dementors made it miserable and almost impossible for visitors to stay very long. This enchantment works very similarly. Once you enter his cell, your magic will be slowly drained out of you. It makes you weak, light-headed, depressed, and it could result in causing you to fall ill. As soon as you're out of there you'll feel perfectly fine. There are no permanent or lasting effects like there were when dementors used to be the guards."

Rose paled but still looked determined. "I don't know why, but I truly believe that I need to do this. What if he has something important to say about Norah or Dominique? I need to hear what he has to say."

"Then I'll go in there with you," Scorpius said.

"You can't," Astoria corrected. "The letter specifically says that Rose must come _alone_. You can accompany her to the gates but they won't even let you onto the grounds."

"Scorpius," said Rose softly as she saw defiance spark in his eyes. "I don't want our first real fight to be over something like this. Nathan attacked me to get to Norah. This is my choice. Please don't start a fight."

Draco and Astoria watched the couple warily. Scorpius had always been so level headed, calm, and collected. Neither of them had ever even seen him this worked up before. The angriest they'd ever seen Scorpius was when he was telling them about the conversation the boys in his dormitory had about wanting to marry Rose.

"Fine. As much as it pains me to agree, it would pain me much more to hurt you over this issue and have you traipse off to that god-forsaken place without me. I'll go with you as far as I can and I'll stay there until you return. If there's any sign of trouble then I'll come in with my wand blazing."

She kissed him softly. "I wouldn't have expected anything else."

…

**A/N: Sneak peeks of the next chapter:**

"_**We all wanted you, you know. Scorpius was just the lucky bloke who won."**_

…_**..**_

"_**Do you know what you're getting yourself into, mate? I mean, having an affair with a married woman isn't something you should do lightly."**_

…_**..**_

"_**I said no alcohol at my wedding! If I can't drink it then nobody else can either!"**_


	20. Help

**A/N: Short but important chapter! Please let me know what you think!**

…**..**

Roxanne Weasley hadn't always loved Calvin Saunders. As a matter of fact, when they first met she thought he was quite the dork. Roxanne had always been true to the stereotypical Weasley form. She was bold, loud, brave, and usually getting into some type of mischief.

Calvin Saunders was quiet, studious, abided by all of the rules, and very timid. Through their years together at Hogwarts Roxanne barely paid him a second thought. Until she accidentally came across his journal after he left it in the Transfiguration classroom.

Because he was a muggle-born, it was just a regular spiral-bound notebook and that was what had drawn Roxanne's eye. Having no idea who it belonged to, she opened it up and began to read. It was full of drawings, poems, and deep profound thoughts that she'd never even contemplated before. After spending an entire evening going through the journal, she'd half fallen in love with the bloke who wrote it.

And it was, she was sure, a bloke, because the handwriting was so clearly masculine. Plus some of the poems were about girls he liked although no names were ever mentioned. Calvin, unknowingly, sparked a fire in Roxanne's heart by opening her mind to possibilities she'd never previously entertained. The way he used words! Merlin, those words made her melt.

Bound and determined to figure out who the owner of the journal was, Roxanne began asking around but nobody knew. Calvin always stayed to himself and didn't attract attention so of course nobody knew it was his journal. Not one to easily give up, Roxanne kept it in her messenger bag all the time. Until one day she was studying in the library. Calvin came in, sat down, began pulling books out of his bag, and accidentally dropped one. The loud bang caused her to jump and send a glare his way. That was when she saw it; a journal very much like the one she'd been holding onto. Calvin was the only person she'd ever seen use one.

Shocked, but glad to finally have the mystery solved, she'd approached him. They struck up a conversation, became friends, and because of his timid demeanor it took him a few years after Hogwarts to ask her to officially be his girlfriend. They were exact opposites but were exactly what each other needed in life.

George Weasley was still of the opinion that castrating Calvin was the way to go, but his wife had dissuaded him from that course of action. Now they were all gathered once again at the Burrow for a wedding. George simply couldn't understand what his daughter saw in such a quiet and shy man. His Roxy was so full of life and spunk; what could this guy possibly offer her?

But somehow they made it work. She added spontaneity to his life and he provided her with stability and reality. "You can still change your mind, you know," said George seriously as he watched his daughter adjust her veil and run her hands over her midsection; the dress hid her bump perfectly.

"No I can't, Dad," she grumbled. "Nor do I want to. I love Calvin and we were heading this way long before that damn marriage law."

"What are you going to do when my grandbaby pops out and starts reciting poetry, drinking coffee, and is the most boring baby on the whole planet?"

Roxanne snorted. "Merlin, Dad! Is that what you think of Cal? That he's boring? You obviously haven't been around him enough. He's positively fascinating. He sees the world so differently from you or I."

George rolled his eyes but humored his daughter. "Sorry, Sweetheart. Are you ready? Let's get a move on, don't want to keep all of those guests waiting."

"Rose?" Roxanne looked to her maid of honor. Rose smiled, snatched up the wedding band Roxy had picked for Calvin, and arranged the bride's bouquet before handing it to her.

Rose was walking up the aisle with Fred. Calvin was an only child and thought that it would be a good idea to have his future brother-in-law as his best man. Fred had been quite smug about this and had used it as an opportunity to attempt to convince Calvin to name the baby after him.

"You look good, Rose," Fred whispered inconspicuously as they neared the wedding tent.

"Thanks, Freddie, so do you."

"I didn't mean tonight, although that dress does compliment you. I meant that in general you seem happier."

"I feel happier."

"Good. It looks like we won't have to kill Scorpius after all."

Rose chuckled. "I really like him a lot, Fred. He's a good bloke. I trust him."

Their conversation was cut short because they had reached the tent. "Here goes nothing," Fred mumbled before pulling the flap back and entering the tent with Rose on his arm.

They smiled happily at all of the guests and press. Calvin stood nervously at the front next to the Ministry official, looking like he might faint from nerves. Rose grinned at this and could have sworn she heard Fred chuckle under his breath as well.

Fred kissed Rose delicately on the cheek before they parted ways, causing a soft 'awww' from the press. Rose, the maid of honor, was Roxanne's only bridesmaid. When Rose glanced around at the audience, she caught Scorpius's eye and gave him a broad smile. He beamed back and winked.

The ceremony, just like most of the others, was very short and to the point. Calvin stuttered over his lines a bit but managed to get them out. The press ate him up and thought he was positively adorable.

Likewise, the reception followed. The difference between Roxanne's wedding and the others, however, was the lack of liquor. James and Fred, naturally, decided to attempt to sneak some in anyway.

"Oh shit! Roxanne's coming," Fred shoved the flask back at James who shoved it back at him and the two of them fumbled with it until Roxanne approached and then James promptly shoved it behind his back.

"What's going on?" she asked innocently.

"Congratulations, Sis!" Fred threw his arms around Roxanne and hugged her tightly.

"Your breath smells like firewhiskey," she noted with a crinkle of her nose. Fred paled. Roxanne gave them her best Weasley glare and James revealed the flask that was hidden. "I said no alcohol at my wedding! If I can't drink it then nobody else can either!" she was screaming now and several people turned to listen.

"Roxy, dear," Calvin was beside her, putting a hand on her arm to calm her down.

She threw his hand off with a shake. "Fuck it!" She screamed. Then she turned, waved to the crowd who had gathered and yelled as loudly as she could, "I'm pregnant! Calvin and I are having a baby! If I catch anyone else drinking any alcohol here tonight, I'll start throwing hexes!"

Silence. Roxanne bestowed them with her most winning smile. "Now that that's settled, continue having a good, _sober_, evening!"

….

_Hugo,_

_As you well know, Rose and I are back from our honeymoon. I know that something has been a bit off with you, as you drank yourself silly at Fred's wedding. I know that we don't know each other very well, but I'm here if you need someone to talk to. Rose holds you in very high esteem and I get the impression that she looks up to you even though you are her younger brother. Even the most intelligent people in the world sometimes need someone to just sit and listen and not judge. With all of the crazy things happening in your family as a result of this marriage law it might have been a bit easy for you to get lost in the shuffle. But know this – Rose loves you very much and whoever Rose loves must be very special. I'll keep any secrets you share with me and I'll give my best advice if you ask for it. _

_Sincerely,_

_Scorpius H. Malfoy_

Scorpius read the letter several times before sending it out with the owl. It sounded a bit….girly to him. Very emotional and mushy. But Hugo looked so lost and messed up that night. Scorpius was sincerely worried about him. Hugo had to know that Scorpius cared. With a firm nod, Scorpius rolled up the scroll and sent it off with his owl.

…

"Are you sure about this?" Scorpius had never looked more unhappy in the short time that Rose had been with him.

"Yes, I am," they were in a carriage that was being pulled by two thestrals. Just like they were back at Hogwarts. Except this was a far, far darker place than the castle Rose loved.

Azkaban prison was on an island. An island with sharp jagged cliffs and not a living thing in sight aside from the people in the carriage and the creatures pulling it. Apparition to and from the island was impossible. Scorpius and Rose Apparated to the edge of the mainland where a wizarding ferry boat took them across to the island and now the carriage was drawing them up to the gates.

"Merlin, I'm shaking already," she grumbled as she caught sight of the place. "All that's missing is a thunderstorm." It was like a fortress straight from a nightmare.

"You don't have-"

"I _know_ that I don't have to, Scorpius, but I haven't changed my mind."

The carriage stopped just outside of the gates. A burly looking wizard rushed up and opened the door of the carriage for Rose and Scorpius to climb out. "Names?"

"Scorpius and Rose Malfoy," he said as he handed over their wands for inspection.

"Alright, Mrs. Malfoy, you're cleared to enter. Mr. Malfoy, I'm sorry but you'll have to stay here with me."

"I'm not even allowed to go in the facility?" He'd suspected as much but hated to have it confirmed.

"I'm afraid so," the guard said.

Another wizard approached to escort Rose to Nathan's cell. Before she went with him, however, she turned back, hugged Scorpius tightly, whispered, "I'll be right back," and kissed him briefly.

The guard led her into the prison and she gave a shiver; it was several degrees colder on the inside. "Sorry," he grunted. "You get used to it after a while."

"It's fine," it was the first moment Rose had begun to doubt her decision. The whole placed was screaming at her to run as far away as she could get. She remembered her dad talking about visiting the place when he was an Auror. Hermione would have to have something stronger than firewhiskey ready for him when he got home.

"You'll be put into his cell with him, but a Shield Charm will be between you. You're aware of how a shield charm works, I presume? You'll be able to see and hear each other perfectly but not touch."

"Good," she wrapped her arms around herself and rubbed her arms vigorously in a failed attempt to warm herself up.

They climbed large stone steps and Rose couldn't help but glance at the occupants of the cells that they passed; they looked mostly like heaps of gray rags. "Look at you, you pretty little thing! Feel free to put her in my cell, Herb!" One prisoner called.

The guard growled and shot the prisoner a dirty look. "She's here to visit, not to stay. Make another remark like that again and you'll be moved to a cell without a window."

Rose kept her eyes down, staring at her feet after that. "Here we are," they had finally reached Nathan. She looked up and was surprised to find him looking mostly normal. He was paler, yes, and a bit gaunt, but overall he looked fairly healthy.

After the guard locked Rose into the cell with Nathan he retreated, giving them the privacy that the law required. "Thank you for coming," his voice was still strong and deep but held just a hint of depression. "I didn't think you would."

"I didn't even think twice about it," Rose wanted to smile at him in a reassuring way but found it hard to do. That must be the enchantment from the cell working on her magic. The tips of her fingers and toes tingled with a cold edge, as if the warmth was slowly being sucked out of her body.

"I have a few things that I wanted to say," Nathan began abruptly. Rose took a seat on a rickety wooden chair the prison provided for her, straight across from where Nathan sat on a ragged cot. "First I wanted to apologize."

"For?" she crossed her legs and folded her arms over her chest.

"For everything. I'm sorry for hurting you, impersonating Scorpius, hurting Al, and…and Norah. I know it's not an excuse, but you don't understand what kind of pressure I was under. My father…he…" Nathan gulped. "_He put me under the Imperius Curse._"

Rose raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "You expect me to believe that? Why didn't you tell me at your trial? Why haven't you told the guards? You can't just drag me in here, spout off lies, and expect me to go have Uncle Harry release you."

Nathan was shaking his head rapidly back and forth. "I'm still under it," the words sounded forced from him. "It's weaker when I'm in my cell. I can fight it and almost throw it off completely. But he's forbidding me from telling the authorities the truth. Whenever I try to tell anyone the truth, I can't if there's any type of guard or Auror within earshot."

"If you really want me to believe this shite you're going to have to explain it just a bit more."

"In the past I have hit Norah," Nathan looked away as he said this. "It was the only way I knew how to be because that's how my father was. I have always been a darker sort of wizard, Rose, and you know this. I've done and said many things that I shouldn't have. During Sixth Year at Hogwarts I began to drink. Like my father, I quickly became an alcoholic. The first time I met up with Dominique after receiving the letter that I was to marry her, I scared her. She tried to leave so I grabbed her…forcefully. Then I caught sight of my reflection in a storefront window. I saw a monster holding a scared girl and I let her go. She fled. That night I vowed to never drink again and I would really try to do my best to be a better wizard. When I got home, however, my father asked me to go find Norah. I said no. I honestly didn't care that she'd left without telling my family where she was. Father did. He put me under the _Imperius Curse_. After everything that happened the night I attacked you, he forced me to wait at the Hog's Head Tavern for someone to find me. He forced me to confess everything and take my sentence in Azkaban for it."

Rose thought back to that night. She had thought it was odd that Nathan didn't try to run. Nor did he try to sugar-coat what he'd done. He had repeated the facts to Harry calmly. Rose blanched. "But…"

He held up a hand to stop her from speaking. "One of his direct, implicit, instructions was to not tell the truth to the authorities. I can't seem to shake that one. I can still feel his presence on my will as we speak. I've already said it before but I'll say it again, _I'm not a good wizard, Rose_. But damn it, I wanted to try to be! I was terrible and vile. When we were at Hogwarts, talking about the marriage law, do you know what I said? I said that I wanted to marry you because you're fucking _fit_, your family is rich, and you have good social status."

Rose looked positively shocked. "_You _wanted me?"

"We all wanted you, you know. Scorpius was just the lucky bloke who won."

She felt her chest tighten. But before she could think too much about this, Nathan continued. "I went so far as to say that if you didn't want to have sex with me and we were married, I would force you to," she shook his head and gave a dry laugh. "I don't even know why I said that. To sound tough in front of my friends, I guess. Maybe I couldn't have changed who I was no matter what. Maybe I would have always been this dark evil guy, abusing women and being intoxicated every day for the rest of my fucking life. But unless you help me get this Curse lifted, I'll never know."

"How?" she asked. "Even if I did believe your story, nobody else will believe me. They'll think you tricked me."

"I've been thinking about that a lot, actually. Not much else to do in here but think," Rose shivered involuntarily at his words. Yes, she could feel the coldness creeping into her bones now. "There's an enchantment on these cells. I know you feel it. Draining your magic. The only way to lift the Imperius Curse is to either kill or seriously maim the caster. Both of those are illegal. What if you could just figure out whatever spell it is they have in place here at Azkaban and apply it to my father? Drain him of his magic and I won't be Imperiused any longer."

"There's another way, you know. The caster could remove the spell himself if it really is in place on you."

"He'll never do that." Nathan scoffed. Rose knew that unfortunately, he was probably right.

"Is there anything else you wanted to say before I leave?" She didn't want to tell him that she was seriously considering his request. She didn't want to tell him that despite how much she distrusted him, she sort of believed his story. Most of all, she didn't want him to know that she was starting to feel sympathetic for him.

"Yes," his rough voice cracked. "Tell Norah, Dominique, and Scorpius that I'm sorry."

….

Rose felt like she was gasping for fresh air by the time she reached Scorpius. Her body was weak, as predicted, and she was shaking uncontrollably. "Give her some chocolate, a Warming Spell, and let her sleep. She'll be just fine," the guard said to Scorpius.

Scorpius nodded, not saying anything as he scooped Rose up into his arms and took her into the carriage that carried them back across the island to the ferry. Rose said nothing. She couldn't speak as her teeth were chattering so badly and she was _so _tired.

He didn't set her down for an instant. She was in his arms all the way across the ferry and on their way back to Malfoy Manor. Scorpius tucked her into bed and had Rin bring her some chocolate. After eating as much as she could without making herself sick, Rose fell into an uneasy sleep. Scorpius cast a Warming Charm around her and retreated out of the bedroom, closing the door softly behind him.

"Master Scorpius?" he jumped at the high squeaky voice that startled him.

"Yes, Rin?"

"There is a wizard here to see you, Master. He is saying he is Mistress Rose's brother; Hugo."

"Thanks, Rin, did you let him in?" she shook her head, her bat-like ears flapping worriedly. "Well you can let him in. Hugo Weasley is always welcome here, understood?" she nodded her head quickly. "Take him into the parlor, I'll be there in a minute." Rin disappeared with a crack.

Hugo didn't know what he was doing here. Perhaps he shouldn't have come at all. But it was too late now. The bobbing little house elf led him to a parlor and he stood stiffly by the fireplace waiting for Scorpius.

"Hugo," he spun around to see Scorpius striding toward him. "Would you like a drink?"

"Yes, please," Hugo ran a hand nervously through his hair and took the drink Scorpius offered him. Scotch.

"Now, mate, what's going on?" Scorpius motioned for him to sit down and the two of them sat in armchairs across from each other by the fire.

Hugo looked away, staring at the flames. "I'm not really sure if I should tell you. You see, I've never told anyone, and now it's more important than ever to keep it a secret."

"You can trust me," Scorpius set his drink down and looked at his brother-in-law very seriously. "I'm your brother now. I want to help you. You haven't done anything illegal have you?"

"Not…really," Hugo winced.

Scorpius leaned back in his chair. "Just spit it out, Hugo. Get it off your chest and we can go from there."

"I'm seeing somebody."

"Well," Scorpius certainly had not been expecting that. "Good on you, mate! Who's the lucky bird?"

"That's the problem," Hugo still couldn't find it in himself to hold eye contact with Malfoy. "She's married."

Scorpius couldn't believe what he had just heard. "You can't be serious? How long has this been going on?"

"She and I have been dating for over a year now, secretly, because there's a bit of an age difference that had her worried about going public. Then that damn law went into effect. I ended things, Scorpius, I truly did. I told her I couldn't see her anymore and I ran away to fucking _Italy_ for a few weeks trying to get over things. When I came back, she told me that the bloke she'd been assigned to marry had a girlfriend himself. She and her husband-to-be agreed that they could both keep seeing other people and just be married in print. Her husband is still seeing the other woman, and she is still seeing me. So it's not very wrong, is it?"

"Do you know what you're getting yourself into, mate? I mean, having an affair with a married woman isn't something you should do lightly. Even if her husband approves of it. I'm assuming that she's already married now?"

Hugo nodded. "It's Heather."

"You're yanking my wand," Scorpius gave a low whistle and dropped his head into his hand. "You're fucking your cousin's wife?"

"We're _dating_," the patient Ravenclaw corrected, "not just fucking."

"It's a messed up situation, I'll admit that, but everything makes so much sense now! Blimey! Nobody ever knew that you two were seeing each other?"

"I almost told Rose once but couldn't get the words out. We're three years apart and Heather thought that she would look bad if word got out about the two of us."

"Why would she think that would look bad?" Scorpius had been raised in a pureblood household. To him, a three year age difference was nothing. He'd heard about his own family members being married off when they were fifteen to wizards or witches two or three times their age.

Hell, wizards and witches tended to live abnormally long lifespans anyway, so many couples were several years, sometimes decades, apart. "She's muggle-born. In muggle society it's frowned upon because I'm still underage."

"Ah, yes, I see. Well, I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that you're in love with her?"

"I am."

"And no matter what happens, you're committed to this? You do realize that in a year you'll be subjected to this law?"

"Two years," Hugo clarified.

"I thought you're sixteen?"

"I am, but I have two years left at Hogwarts and the law doesn't apply to Hogwarts students."

"Does Fred know about this? How is your relationship with him? Aren't you two close friends?"

"I reckon we're pretty close, yes, but our relationship has been strained ever since he got engaged to Heather. To be honest I don't think he's even realized it yet because I've been trying really hard to not show it, but every time I'm around him now I want to punch him right in the face."

"So he must not be aware that it is you his wife is seeing?"

"No, he's not. All he knows is that she has a boyfriend. They have a house now and they have separate rooms. She's kept her flat in Hogsmeade and we meet up there."

"Godric this is all so messed up," Scorpius ran a hand over his face and sighed.

"You're telling me. So, _brother_, what's your best advice?"

For once in his life Scorpius Malfoy had no idea what to say. Eventually he settled on, "I want you to be happy, Hugo, and if this is what makes you happy, then go for it. But keep in mind how things are going to change in the future. I'm sure you two aren't the only affair that happened as a result of this law. How long will the Ministry let them continue? What will happen once you're married to someone else?"

Hugo was quiet. He'd already thought about those things and so much more. Always so logical and several steps ahead of what others were thinking. He honestly hadn't come here for advice, he'd just needed to vent about his problems. When it came down to it, Hugo Weasley was the brightest wizard his age but despite that, in this one instance, his heart was triumphing over his brain.


	21. First Fight

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Language and very light smut**

**Author's Note at the end.**

…**.**

Malfoy Manor wasn't home. Not to her. Not yet. It still felt cold and empty. Despite all of the warmth Astoria tried to fuse into it, the mansion still held remnants of the Dark things that had taken place there.

Rose was used to being in homes where everywhere she looked she could see the faces of her family. The Burrow was her favorite place to be. It was small, but bursting at the seams with love. She'd never been a very social person, but she'd always loved being in the midst of so many people who loved her. Now she was rather lonely.

Scorpius had started his training in the Office of Muggle Relations and her granddad Weasley had told her that he was a natural. Rose had snorted at that. The telly still fascinated him for Merlin's sake!

Aside from the number of weddings taking place, things were settling down quite nicely for Rose and her family. She and Scorpius had been to Adara's wedding and Rose honestly felt quite bad for the girl as she obviously did not love her husband. There were still several weddings in the future they needed to attend; Lucy's, Louis's, Albus's, Dominique's, Liam's, and a few other family friends that Rose had. Most of the weddings were spread out nicely over the next few months so Rose had plenty of time in between to try to get settled into her new life.

What made this even more difficult was that she didn't _go_ to work. Her work consisted of sitting at the desk in the bedroom that she now shared with Scorpius and writing different articles and, of course, her Modest Monica works. The one after Roxanne's wedding had been particularly difficult to write. After all, she refused to say anything mean about her family, so she had to be tactful in the way she handled Roxy's pregnancy with the public.

Now that she had nothing else to do and was, presumably, alone in her monster of a house, she decided that she wanted to cook. If she started it soon, she could probably have a roast beef dinner ready for Scorpius and his parents.

He had been correct when he told her that she would rarely see his parents. They never ventured to the part of the house where Scorpius's room was unless they needed to speak with him. Not to mention Draco went to work almost every day, and Astoria had plenty of social gatherings to keep her busy.

Astoria had offered to take Rose to a sort of wizard country club, to meet elite wizards and witches, but Rose had politely refused. Sometimes she didn't feel like she could ever actually fit in with this family. But she was going to try. Starting with dinner.

Feeling just slightly awkward at the prospect of going through the cupboards and stores of food in the house, she instead went to the market. After doing a bit of shopping and returning to the house she got to work.

Rin was the most helpful house elf of the three that resided at Malfoy Manor. Apparently there was one house elf for each member of the family, with duties specific to helping their assigned Malfoy.

"Rin? Do you have a pot that I could boil these carrots in?" Rose asked as she didn't want to search through the myriad of cupboards in the kitchen.

"Oh, yes, Mistress. Rin is having lots of pots for cooking! Is Mistress sure that she is wanting to cook dinner? House elves is liking to cook for the family, Mistress."

Rose smiled, "I'm sure, Rin, I like to cook, too. How about we cook together?"

The two excitedly set to work. Rose was glad for the extra set of helping hands. Whenever she was fortunate enough to have someone else help her with cooking or baking, they were normally complaining the whole time. Especially Albus. It was nice to have someone there who was actually excited to help.

The roast beef was in the oven when Rose started on dessert. After asking Rin what the favorites of the family were, Rose decided to make a few different things. Apple crumble, a toffee pudding, and a chocolate pie.

"Rose?" she heard her name being called from the top of a flight of steps. The kitchen was in a lower level of the house. Apparently there was a basement (where the kitchen was), and then an ever _lower_ basement which was really more of a cellar. Rin said that nobody was allowed down there anymore, and Rose knew instinctively that must have been where they'd kept war prisoners during the Second Wizard War.

"Hey," she beamed at Scorpius as he came trotting into the kitchen wearing his Ministry staff robes. "How did you find me?"

"Well, honestly it wasn't that difficult. You weren't in the bedroom, you weren't in the music room, I couldn't find you in any of the libraries, so the kitchen was the next logical place to look."

"Godric, isn't living here exhausting? You probably got quite the hike searching for me."

Scorpius chuckled, "I thought of it more as a game of hide-and-go-seek." He wrapped his arms around her from behind, with his chest pressed against her back.

"Congratulations, you found me!" she teased as she sprinkled some powdered sugar on her toffee pudding.

"Mmm," he buried his mouth against her throat. "Do I get a prize?"

"Yes," she gasped, "You do." Then she turned around and presented him with the toffee pudding that Rin had insisted was his favorite.

Scorpius looked simultaneously delighted and disappointed. It was almost comical how easily Rose could read him now. Delighted that she'd made his favorite dessert and disappointed that his prize for finding her wasn't sex.

He reached for it eagerly but Rose slapped his hand away. "Tut tut," she wagged a finger at him. "Dinner first, then dessert."

"Bloody tease," Scorpius grumbled. "Is that dinner I smell?"

"Mmhmm, roast beef," she informed him.

"Did you make it?"

"I did."

"We have house elves, you know. I know that you like to bake, and you're more than welcome to it, but you don't have to play this role of the little housewife."

"I'm not," Rose said sincerely. "I wanted to cook."

"We could always go out to eat, too. There's this great Italian place up near Yorkshire-"

"Scorpius, we can't eat out all the time. That costs money."

"Which we have plenty of. Cooking food here costs money, too."

"Yes, but I don't feel as bad about it when I went to the market and bought all of the ingredients myself."

Scorpius frowned at her. "You went out and bought the food to cook tonight?" Rose nodded. "Merlin, Rose, this house is stocked full of food! We probably have enough here that you could have made roast beef every night this week without having to go to a market."

"I didn't feel comfortable going through your pantries and things," she mumbled, the tips of her ears turning red in embarrassment.

"…didn't feel comfortable? Rose, damn it, I don't know how many times I have to tell you this, but this is _your home_ now, too! My food is your food, my kitchen is your kitchen, my money is your money!"

"I can't help it! I don't feel right about using your money or your food! I work, I should help pay for things."

"You don't even need to work! If you want to write your newspaper articles, that's great, I love to read them, but don't feel like you have to! You're a Malfoy. We're so fucking rich we don't know what to do with all the money we've got!"

"Oh! So two seconds ago you were telling me that I didn't have to be a little housewife but now you're telling me that I don't have to work? Godric, Scorpius, make up your bloody mind!"

"You're such a stubborn bint!" he growled. "You act like you can't take anything from me! Like we're not in this together! You use your own money, your own food, you barely even touch the instruments and other things that I've provided for you! You act as if it's not yours, well news flash, baby, IT IS!" He screamed.

"YOU'RE SUCH A SPOILED RICH BRAT, MALFOY!" Rose cried, her face turning red now from anger instead of embarrassment. "JUST BECAUSE YOU'VE NEVER HAD TO WORK FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DOESN'T MEAN THE REST OF US DON'T APPRECIATE PUTTING IN SOME HARD EFFORT!"

"ARE YOU BARMY? WHY THE FUCK DO YOU THINK I HAVE A JOB? I KNOW THE VALUE OF HARDWORK! I JUST ALSO KNOW THAT IN A MARRIAGE, YOU FUCKING SHARE THINGS!"

"THEY DON'T FEEL LIKE MY THINGS! WE'VE BEEN MARRIED FOR A COUPLE FO WEEKS! I'M USING THE DAMN KITCHEN, AREN'T I?"

"BARELY! I BET YOU DIDN'T EVEN OPEN A SINGLE CUPBOARD IN THIS BLASTED PLACE! YOU PROBABLY ASKED RIN TO GET THE THINGS YOU NEEDED OUT FOR YOU! YOU WERE PROBABLY PLANNING ON DOING THE DISHES AFTER THE MEAL, TOO!"

Rose bristled, angry at his correct assumption. "SO WHAT IF I DID? IS A MALFOY TOO _GOOD_ TO DO HOUSEWORK? AM I ABOVE SUCH MENIAL TASKS NOW THAT I HAVE YOUR SURNAME?"

"IS THAT WHAT YOU THINK?" Scorpius roared.

"YES," she put her hands on her hips defiantly. "IT IS!"

"FINE THEN! I HOPE YOU HAVE FUN PLAYING HOUSE ELF!"

"GO TO HELL, MALFOY!" before he had the chance to reply, Rose Disapparated.

…

When her feet hit solid ground again, she was surprised where she found herself. "Albus? Hugo?" her old flat.

Albus and Hugo were sitting across from each other with a game of Wizard's Chess between them. "Hey, Rose, what's up?" Albus asked without even looking up from the game board.

Hugo, however, gave her a very strange calculating look before asking, "What's wrong? What happened?"

Normally at this point, a girl would start crying. Rose, however, was one girl who had inherited the Weasley temper, so instead she began to scream. "MALFOY IS A FUCKING PRAT! HE ACTS LIKE HE'S SO HIGH ABOVE THE REST OF THE WIZARDING SOCIETY JUST BECAUSE HE'S RICH!"

"Calm down there, Rosie," Albus leaned back, away from her, as she began to pace while throwing her hands around wildly.

"NO, I DON'T THINK I WILL CALM DOWN, THANKS! ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS COOK! HE ACTED LIKE IT WAS THE WORST CRIME ON THE PLANET! FIRST HE WANTED THE HOUSE ELVES TO COOK INSTEAD, THEN HE SUGGESTED THAT WE GO OUT TO EAT. AM I NOT ALLOWED TO MAKE DINNER FOR MY HUSBAND?"

Rose stomped around a bit more before dropping into an armchair. "Well?" she demanded snippily.

Albus cleared his throat, about to speak, but Hugo cut him off. "I've got this one, Al." Rose didn't even care that they were talking to her like she was a child who needed to have something explained to her. Because honestly, what the hell was she missing here?

Albus gave him a look that clearly said, 'it's your funeral, mate' but let Hugo talk to her anyways. "From what I gathered from that particularly loquacious rant, big sister, is that you and Scorpius had a fight involving you making dinner for him, correct?"

"Yes."

Hugo nodded knowingly and Rose glowered. She and Hugo were both well above average in the intelligence department. The difference between them, however, was that Hugo was _always_ so calm and collected whereas Rose's heated temper sometimes blinded her to logic.

"What exactly happened?" Hugo asked.

Rose briefly went over the conversation, being sure to quote it to almost verbatim, until both Hugo and Albus sported looks of dawning comprehension. "Ah, I see," said Al.

"Well I don't!" Rose screeched.

"Here's the thing, Rosie," Hugo delicately patted her on the knee. "You and Scorpius were raised very differently. You show affection by taking care of the people who matter to you. Your way of taking care of your husband is to provide food for him and probably take care of the laundry, things like that…"

"Are you saying that I'm turning into Gran?" she asked as her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"No," Albus jumped in immediately. "It's just, that's how we were raised, you know? We do things ourselves, we appreciate the effort we put into it, and you in particular need to feel needed in relationships."

Rose contemplated this. Was that true? Did she want to feel like Scorpius needed her? Before she could think too much about it, Hugo chimed in, "Scorpius was raised almost the exact opposite. He shows love and affection by showering you with gifts and expensive things. He was trying to take care of you and show you how much you meant to him by offering to have his house elf cook for you and by offering to take you out to dinner. He wanted to show you that you didn't need to try to impress him or win him over with your amazing talents in the kitchen."

Now that she was calming down she could see the reason behind what the boys were saying. "You both want to take care of each other but you're both very stubborn. If you want this marriage to work well then you're going to have to find ways to compromise." Hugo said this as if it were the end of the conversation.

"I shouldn't have run off just because we argued," she noted.

"No, you shouldn't have."

"I should go back and apologize."

"Yes, but make sure that he knows neither of you were in the right."

"I don't suppose there's much else I can do since it's not like we can just call it quits and divorce. Damn marriage bonds."

Hugo shrugged lightly. "Divorce is both possible and impossible."

"I'm talking about divorce in the wizard world, Hu."

"So am I."

"What?" she looked at him sharply. "It's impossible for wizards to divorce once they've taken the marriage bonds!"

"No, it's not. It's just improbable," Hugo mused. Seeing the look of confusion on his sister's face, he continued. "Marriage bonds aren't like Unbreakable Vows. They're more like…the Unforgivable Curses."

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it, Rose. What has to happen for you to cast an Unforgivable Curse?"

"You have to point your wand and say the spell," she said curtly.

"You have to _mean_ it. If you took the marriage bonds flippantly, without putting any real feeling into them, then they're not very strong and can be reversed. That being said, this marriage law strictly forbids divorce. So even if you didn't mean the words you recited on your wedding day, it doesn't matter because the Ministry will not, under any circumstances, grant a bill of divorce to couples who were married as a result of the law."

"I…I had no idea! Hugo, how did you learn about that?"

His eyes held a panicked look for just a moment before he hid it and said evenly, "I was curious about all of the finer points of the law when it became a reality, so I researched it a bit." If only she knew just how deeply he had researched it and why. But there were no loopholes. There was no way he could be with Heather now that she was bonded to Fred under this law.

"Now go home to Scorpius and fix this. I'd hate to think of my favorite cousin living in an unhappy marriage just because you disagreed about dinner," Albus told her firmly, reminding her again just how ridiculous this fight was. But Rose knew it was about more than simply dinner. She and Scorpius were, in a way, from two different worlds, and they needed to find some common ground.

Rose nodded and stood up, realizing with a small laugh that she was still wearing an apron dotted with food. "Thanks, both of you," she kissed each of them on the top of the head before preparing to Disapparate. "Oh, and Al? Sorry, but Hugo is going to win in three moves," with a wink she was gone.

Albus looked at the chess game with furrowed brows before mumbling, "…doesn't know what she's talking about."

Three moves later Hugo declared checkmate and Albus started swearing.

…..

Scorpius honestly didn't know where he had gone wrong. He'd offered her the fucking world and she'd thrown it back in his face like he was stupid for offering it to her.

But he still felt the need to apologize.

What the hell was up with that? He hadn't done anything wrong! Had he? But Godric, he missed her already. She'd only been gone for maybe half an hour and he wanted her back. He wanted her right there, in his arms, snogging him.

If all it took to make that happen was an apology then that's what he would do. Perhaps a gift might help also. Yes, that was perfect. He would go shopping, find something nice for her, and then track her down. There were only so many places she would go, after all.

Once he found a gift, he would look at Norah's flat, Albus's flat, James's house, her house, the Burrow….

With a smile, knowing that he would soon be making amends with his lovely wife, he set out for Diagon Alley.

….

Rose arrived back at Malfoy Manor to find it empty. "Rin!" she called loudly as she entered her and Scorpius's bedroom. The house elf appeared immediately. "Is Scorpius here?"

"No, Mistress, Master Scorpius is leaving after his fight with Mistress."

Rose slapped a hand to her forehead. She wasn't the only one who stormed out of a room after an angry argument apparently. "Did he say where he was going?"

"No, but he looked happy."

"Happy?" Rose frowned in confusion. Rin nodded in confirmation. "Alright, thanks, Rin." Rose didn't know what to do. Where would Scorpius have gone? Liam's house maybe? But Rose didn't know where Liam lived.

Adara's? No, definitely not. Patrick, her husband, had seemed to be the jealous type and Rose doubted very much that Scorpius would show up at their house just after their wedding to talk with Adara.

Maybe he'd gone to see Norah. But why would he look happy about that? Shouldn't he be at least a little bit upset that they'd fought? Rose scowled. Stupid tosser.

Not wanting to just be sitting around waiting for him when he came home, like a fucking _dog_ with it's tail between it's legs, Rose stepped over to the fireplace. Her pride wouldn't allow her to just sit and wait humbly. She hadn't seen Fred since his wedding and she'd heard that he got a new house.

She hoped very much that if she Flooed in, he wouldn't be in the middle of doing inappropriate things with Heather. _Although_, she mused evilly as she remembered how Fred and the others had come busting in on her and Scorpius, _paybacks are a bitch._

…

Rose landed in a tastefully decorated sitting room. The house was tiny, cozy, and she felt comfortable here. She recognized a lot of Fred's style; sleek wooden furniture, neutral colors, and his favorite armchair.

She brushed the dirt off of her jeans and heard a distinctly feminine giggle coming from an adjoining room. Thankfully, it didn't sound like any shagging was going on. Maybe just some light snogging.

Cock blocking him would be a good form of revenge. Grinning to herself, she tiptoed across the room, swung the door to the kitchen open, and said loudly, "Hey, Fred!"

Sure enough, she could see Fred's broad back facing her, without a shirt, and there was a dainty figure in his arms with delicate hands locked behind his neck, molding their faces together. Fred gave a start and spun around. Rose froze in disbelief. The girl in his arms was most definitely _not_ Heather.

"Oh! Godric! I'm sorry, Fred!" Rose stuttered over her words just a bit in shock. Then her senses caught up to what was happening and she rushed him with an angry snarl on her face. "YOU PRAT!" she slapped him hard across the face as the girl scrambled back, away from the fighting cousins. "How could you do this? You're _married_!"

"Rose, calm down," Fred held his hands up defensively and Rose's anger flared even more.

"I'm fucking sick of people telling me to calm down when I am at perfect liberty to be mad about this!" Her hands were balled into fists at her sides and she was shaking.

"I should go," the girl mumbled and started to move.

"Don't you fucking move, bitch!" Rose snapped at her with a finger jabbed in her direction. Ophelia stilled and stayed put. "Now, Fredrick Angelo Weasley. _EXPLAIN YOURSELF._"

"It's not, erm, exactly what you think it is." She tapped her foot impatiently. Fred scratched his head as he thought over what to say. He opted for the truth. "Heather and I were both seeing other people when the law came out. We talked about it and decided to keep seeing other people even though we're married."

"She's screwing around on you, too?"

"Rose, we don't see it that way. Heather and I are friends. Just friends."

"I'm glad that you're friends, Fred, but don't the two of you want to at least _try _to make this work? After all, you're stuck together forever!"

He shook his head, "How can I make it work with Heather when I'm in love with Ophelia?"

"Ophelia?" Rose recognized the name and turned to really look at the girl for the first time. "Mother fucker," Rose hissed as she recognized her. This was Ophelia Bones. She was engaged to Liam Jackson, Scorpius's best mate. "Does Liam know about this? Do you two have a similar arrangement?"

"That's irrelevant," said Fred as Ophelia blushed scarlet and looked down at the floor.

Honestly, Rose didn't know how to react. On the one hand she understood that Fred and Heather's marriage was between the two of them. She'd heard of couples in the past not being monogamous. But when Fred was messing around with a girl whose fiancé didn't know about it, that irritated every ethical bone in Rose's body.

"You two should be ashamed of yourselves," she said before turning and striding out, leaving the exact same way she'd come. Again, she didn't know what to think of this. If Heather and Fred didn't want to act like they were married, then that was their decision, but to wreck other marriages along with their own? That's where Rose drew the line in her own moral compass.

How had things gotten this messed up? Just that morning she'd been thinking about how her life was finally starting to settle down. Now she was in a fight with Scorpius, her cousin was having an affair on his wife, she knew that Scorpius's best mate was being cheated on, and she still didn't have a clue as to what to think about Nathan's claim to being Imperiused.

Feeling both exhausted and fed up with everything, Rose went back to Malfoy Manor, collapsed onto the bed, and fell asleep.

…

Scorpius must have searched every shop in Diagon Alley before finally settling on the gift. He knew that she wouldn't want anything too extravagant, so he had tried to keep it simple. As simple as Scorpius was capable of keeping a present, of course.

It was a necklace that matched her ring. It was a rope of diamonds that would circle her throat and one large oval shaped green diamond in the center. She might not like expensive things, but she had loved her ring and this matched it so perfectly that Scorpius knew he had to buy it for her the moment he laid his eyes on it.

When he came home, he found his beautiful wife curled up under the covers and he began to strip out of his clothes. He wondered if she'd thought to take the roast beef out of the oven, but he knew the house elves would take care of it.

Once he was completely naked, Scorpius peeled back the duvet and settled onto his bed beside Rose. She mumbled in her sleep and cuddled up to his side. Did he wake her or let her sleep?

The answer was chosen for him as she yawned and blinked, focusing her eyes on his face. "I'm sorry," she rasped. "I shouldn't have gotten mad at you for wanting me to be comfortable here."

"I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have yelled at you just because you wanted to use your own money for things." With a twinge of disappointment he noted that she was still fully dressed. Not even in her usual t-shirt and panties nighttime ensemble, but in jeans, a cute top, and was she seriously still in that bloody apron?

"The truth is, I have a bit of a temper," Rose admitted grudgingly. "When we fight, which we will, a lot, I'm sure, I will yell at you. I might stomp my feet and flail about, throwing a tantrum. And I will, inevitably, storm out dramatically. But I'll come back. We'll work through these things together."

Scorpius tilted her chin up and kissed her soundly on the mouth. "I have something for you," he murmured.

"Is that where you went?" Rose asked curiously as Scorpius reached around, snatched something off of the table, and brought it up to her hands.

"Yes. I felt like this might help soothe your ire."

Rose lifted the lid of the box gently and her breath left her when she saw the gems inside. "Scorpius…this is too much…"

"No, it's not. We need to get this straight right now, Rose Nymphadora Weasley. If you're going to throw fits like a bratty child then I'm going to buy you expensive gifts like a spoiled wanker."

Rose giggled but nodded as she slipped the necklace out of the box. "Clasp it?" she asked as she turned around so her back was facing him. Scorpius happily obliged and was pleased to find that the diamond fell perfectly just at the top of where her cleavage would be if she wasn't wearing that damn apron.

Slowly, purposefully, Scorpius began to tug her clothes off of her until she was just as naked as he was. The only item he left on her person was the necklace that symbolized to both them their commitment to working through their arguments.

He used his body as leverage to press her gently into the mattress, reveling in the little mewl that escaped her when he nuzzled her cheek. There wasn't much foreplay this time, as they were both more than ready for this moment to happen.

Scorpius wasted no time in slipping inside of her, feeling her walls stretch accommodatingly around his thickness. Even though Rose never realized it at the time, she was sincerely making love to Scorpius Malfoy.

She didn't need to cook for him and bake his favorite desserts to express the feelings that were growing inside of her. And he didn't need to shower her with riches to gain her favor. All that they needed to be happy was each other.

….

**A/N: Knut for your thoughts?**


	22. Proposed Solution

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Sexual content and language ahead!**

…**..**

"Hey, Heather, can I talk to you for a minute?" Heather just came into the house from her shift at work. Fred had called to her from his 'study' which was really the room of the house where he conducted dangerous experiments and tested joke shop products.

"Sure," she dropped her purse onto the sofa and went into the room where her husband was. He sat staring down at a piece of parchment with a frown. Heather's eyes went to the parchment automatically and she became very afraid as she saw the Ministry seal on the top.

"Don't worry," he told her quickly with a smile. "It's nothing official."

Heather didn't trust that smile. It was too pitying. Too angry. Too cynical. "Fred, what does it say?"

"It's from my uncle Percy," he pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes, as if he couldn't say this while looking at her. "Apparently they are considering expanding the marriage law."

"Expanding it? What do you mean?"

"Not all of the couples are as happy as the Ministry was hoping they would be. Their proposed solution? Forcing all of the couples to have a baby."

"No!" she clutched a hand to her throat. "They can't do that!"

"Look at how much they've already done," Fred didn't sound angry, just resigned. "It's not official yet, like I said. It's just a proposal. However, my uncle wanted to prepare all of us just in case this part of the law does pass."

"It…it can't," she could hardly manage to find her voice. Then she turned and strode out of the study.

"Heather!" called Fred, "Where are you going?"

"To…him," she answered.

"I won't do it," he said firmly. Heather stopped.

"Do what?"

"Have a baby with you. I love you, but like a friend, you know? I don't care if they send me to Azkaban. Having a baby with a woman I'm not in love with is where I draw the line. Don't worry, I'll take full responsibility for it. I won't let them take you to Azkaban, too, but please Heather, don't be afraid of me. I _refuse_ to impregnate you."

"Fred, I…I have to go," she gave him a fleeting hug, kissed his cheek, and said, "Ophelia really is a lucky girl." Then she ran up the stairs toward her bedroom. She and Fred slept in separate rooms and she knew that sometimes Ophelia joined him.

It was late in the evening. Hugo was probably sleeping. At home. With his parents. But Heather simply had to see him. There was no place she would rather be than in Hugo's arms at that moment. She needed him to comfort her. Nobody else would be able to.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to Apparate into his house, or Floo there, she took her broomstick from the closet in her bedroom and came stampeding back down the stairs. Fred was still standing in the sitting room, looking unsure of what to do with himself.

As she was reaching for the door, Fred said quickly, "Wait!" Heather flinched. He sighed. "Why do you always do that?"

"Do what?"

"Act like you're waiting for me to just snap and turn into this insanely jealous husband? It's not going to happen, Heather. I don't care that you're going to go spend the night with your boyfriend. I just don't want you rushing out there when you're so upset without even trying to comfort you."

Heather smiled at him fondly. "You're one of my best friends, Fred, and I'm really glad that out of all of the possible pureblood wizards, it's you that I got stuck with, but there's only one person who can comfort me right now."

Fred nodded, the two hugged again, and Heather left.

….

Hugo woke up to a light tapping noise on his window. When he opened his eyes he saw Heather just outside. Without showing any surprise at all, he unlocked the window and let her in. Heather through herself onto him, dropping the broomstick on the floor in the process, and would have knocked both of them over if Hugo hadn't been so solid.

"What's wrong?" his voice was thick with sleep. Heather was clutching him, shaking and crying.

"The Ministry might add to the marriage law," she hiccupped.

"What? What more could they possibly add?" Hugo growled as he gripped her by the upper arms and pulled her back just far enough so he could look at her face as she spoke.

"It's not…it's not for sure going to happen, but they are considering requiring all married couples to have a baby."

"What?" Hugo growled. "You're fucking nineteen years old! They can't possibly force you to get pregnant!"

"I know, Hugo, but I'm so afraid."

"Shh," he enveloped her into his embrace and led her to his bed. He noted with a bit of self-consciousness that she'd never been in his bedroom at home before. But she didn't even seem to notice or care where she was, just who she was with.

"Make love to me?" she asked with a pout. Hugo smiled and brought his hand up to her throat. She sighed and leaned into his touch as his thumb stroked her jaw. Hugo was one of the tallest and broadest men she knew and when she was with him like this she felt positively dwarfed by him but in the best way.

Privately, in her own thoughts, she often thought of him as her own gentle giant. His touch, his kiss, his movements, hell even his thoughts were gentle, but that gentleness was at odds with how intimidating he could look at times.

Heather loved feeling this vulnerable. She loved being in Hugo's arms, the ones that so often lifted her, held her, carried her, knowing that he could so easily hurt her, but he never would. He made her feel dainty, delicate, and fragile.

Finally, after anxious moments of just staring into her eyes, he connected their lips. Every time he kissed her, Heather felt like it was their first kiss all over again. There was the familiar race of her heart, flush in her cheeks, and anticipation coiling deep within her.

Nobody else could ever make her feel this way, and Hugo managed to do it with one simple kiss. His lips were strong on hers, unrelenting until she let her lips part the slightest bit and his tongue slid in to twine with hers. Heather's body trembled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her. She so rarely got to feel the lovely weight of his body pressing on hers.

"…don't want to crush you," he mumbled against her lips. Heather chuckled.

"You won't," she assured him, "I want to feel you against me."

More of his weight dropped onto her and she felt like it would never be enough. She wanted all of him. Apparently he wanted all of her as well. His hands were running up and down her sides, as they liked to do, his fingers flexing against her whenever she did something he particularly enjoyed, like nipping at his bottom lip or running her nails down his back.

Because Hugo, as she'd quickly learned, slept without a shirt. His bare chest had a very light trail of hair down the center and it was a slightly redder shade than the hair on his head. The pajama bottoms he wore were baggy on him and rode low on his lean hips.

Heather lightly scratched down his back and dipped her hands into the waist band of his pajamas, digging her nails into his arse, causing him to instinctively buck his hips against her. The friction made her give a soft cry of pleasure.

Hugo's lips twitched as if he was tempted to smirk, but he whispered raggedly, "I know that normally you're a screamer, which I love, baby, but my parents are right down the hall."

She blinked up at him. "I have to be quiet?" she whined.

"Just tonight," he assured her as he brushed soft kisses against her neck. "If you're tempted to scream, then just keep your mouth occupied."

Heather nodded, unable to vocalize her response as Hugo's warm hand managed to creep between them and cup her mound. Her legs parted and with a grunt he settled himself between them, his rigid cock nestled flush against her clothed center.

As she hungrily tugged at his pajama bottoms, Hugo pulled his face back and frowned at her. "I thought you wanted me to make love to you?"

"I do, but skip the foreplay, please, Hu. I need to feel you inside of me." Satisfaction shot through her when she felt his body shiver with delight at her words. "Do you like it when I talk dirty to you, baby?" she teased, knowing that he did.

Hugo growled low in his throat and discarded his trousers, without removing his body from hers. Her breath caught in her throat and her next set of words were shaky while his fingers tugged impatiently at her shorts. "Merlin, Hugo, I can't even think straight when you're touching me."

As he pulled her shorts and knickers down her legs he dragged his tongue down her inner thigh. A soft squeal escaped her as she bit her bottom lip to keep from outright screaming. "I've been thinking about this all day. You taking me like this."

Despite the fact that it was almost always dormant, Hugo did have a secret devious side (he _was_ a Weasley after all), and Heather could bring it out in him more effectively than anyone else ever had. "I'll take you however you want me to," he told her as he kissed just below her bellybutton.

"Own me," she commanded. "Show me that I belong to you."

Hugo quirked one eyebrow at her, testing her resolve. Is that really what she wanted tonight? Because to Hugo, making love to Heather and owning her in bed were two different things. One was sweet and sensual, the other was rougher and more dominating.

When she gazed steadily back at him he knew that this was what she had really wanted. Moving with the practiced agility of a skilled Quidditch player, Hugo slid up her body and slammed into her. Heather bit his shoulder hard to muffle the noises she wanted to release.

"That's right, sugar, keep that pretty mouth on me the whole time," he told her as he began pounding into her hard and fast, resting more of his body on hers than he normally did when they were in this position.

She was still wearing her shirt, but she didn't even care. She'd told him no foreplay and he hadn't wasted any time getting to the good stuff. Heather sucked hard on his neck to keep herself quiet. Godric she never realized how loud she was in bed until she wasn't allowed to be.

With one hand Hugo fucking _tore_ her shirt from hem to collar, balled it in his fist, and chucked it away from them. "It was in my way," was his grunted explanation as she reveled in this fresh contact of his muscled belly gliding against her flat one. Not wanting to remove his hands from their current position on her hips, he bent his head down to undo the front clasp on her bra with his teeth, letting her breasts spring free for him to view and taste. Merlin he loved watching them bounce as he drove into her over and over again.

Knowing that his cock was hitting all the right spots inside of her, he didn't have to worry about making sure she reached her climax; she was already shaking, writhing, and clutching at his shoulders like she was drowning and he was the life raft.

"Just like that, Hugo, just like that," she told him unnecessarily when she trusted herself enough to speak softly.

"Don't worry, darling, you'll get off, I'll make sure of that," he murmured darkly as he grabbed at her hips harder, pinning them to the bed so they wouldn't move as his thrusts became erratic.

Out of habit, Heather wrapped her legs around his waist, "That's my girl," he noted with pride, his voice low and breathy. "Knows just what I like."

That was the moment her control shattered. Wave after wave of pleasure assaulted her and Hugo followed, as he normally did, after only a few thrusts more. There was just something so wonderful about her pussy convulsing around him that often pushed him off the edge and into orgasm.

"I love you," her voice was hoarse from the strain of holding back her screams.

"I love you, too, sweetheart, and no matter what the Ministry says, you _are_ mine."

Feeling properly claimed by him, Heather curled up in his arms and stroked his chest lovingly until he fell asleep. She tossed and turned for a long time, wondering what the hell she was going to do if the Ministry tried to force her to have a baby with Fred.

When she finally succumbed to sleep, it was fitful and plagued with nightmares.

….

Hugo woke up before her and he could tell from the dark circles under her eyes that she hadn't slept well, if at all, the previous night. Guilt assaulted him. He should have stayed awake with her and comforted her. But she'd seemed so relaxed after the amazing shagging!

Doing his best to be a considerate boyfriend, he kissed her forehead and decided to let her sleep. Quite frankly, he was beyond caring about who knew about them. He was beyond caring about hiding their relationship. He was beyond being embarrassed about his active sex life. Hugo collected some clothes, left the bedroom, took a shower in the bathroom down the hall, and went downstairs.

Both of his parents were already awake, had already eaten breakfast, and were now starting the normal routine of the days they had off of work. His mother was doing house work while his dad went through piles of order forms from the joke shop.

Because of his, his sister's, and his mother's, voracious appetites for reading, they had what they called 'the library'. It was a small room in their house that could have been used as a guest bedroom or a study, but they'd lined it with bookshelves, comfortable chairs, and turned it into a mini library.

That's where Hugo found himself as his beautiful girlfriend slept upstairs. He picked a book off one of the shelves at random, plopped down onto a sofa, and began to read.

….

Hermione Weasley sometimes thought that taking care of her house and family was more exhausting than going to work. Hugo, despite his mature thoughts, was still a boy and had enough of his father in him that he left clothes strewn around his bedroom and only did chores when he was told to.

With a laundry basket tucked under her arm, Hermione creaked open Hugo's bedroom door, planning on using a non-verbal Summoning Charm to collect his dirty laundry. But as she raised her wand, she paused. There was someone in his bed.

Upon closer inspection, Hermione saw that an obviously feminine figure was lying on her stomach, her face obscured by her luscious brown hair, the sheet pulled down to her hips so that her bare back was completely exposed, and she was sound asleep.

Just at that moment her husband was walking by, whistling quietly to himself as he made his way toward the kitchen to get himself a snack. Before he could pass by, however, Hermione grabbed his arm and hissed, "Ronald! Look!" Ron Weasley poked his head into Hugo's bedroom and his jaw became unhinged. His eyes bulged and his ears began turning red.

"Bloody hell," he gasped.

They retreated quickly, still in a state of shock, closing their son's bedroom door behind them. Without saying a word to each other, they went downstairs and entered the library with trepidation.

Hugo lazy licked the tip of his finger and used it to turn the page in his book. "Hugo," Hermione squeaked, sounding nervous. He glanced up at her to show he was listening. "Erm…there's…there's…" he blinked at her.

"There's a naked girl in your bed!" Ron said tactfully.

"Yes, I'm aware," said Hugo as if he didn't find this information particularly interesting. "And she's exhausted, so if you could let her sleep for a bit, that would be great."

"Is that a love bite on your neck?" Hermione's voice was still high pitched and Hugo rolled his eyes at his mum's overdramatic nature. Ron, oppositely, was torn between shock, worry, and pride.

"Mum," Hugo began, but Hermione interrupted.

"Don't use that tone with me! You can't...you're just…damn it, Hugo Arthur Weasley! You're fifteen-"

"Sixteen."

"Barely! Barely sixteen years old! You shouldn't be doing…this!" she waved her hands around frantically, much the same way that Rose did when she was upset.

"Hermione," Ron admonished, "Think about how we were at sixteen. We were plenty old enough to get into…into what this is…"

Hermione flushed angrily. "I don't like it going on under my roof, Ronald!"

"Mum," Hugo tried again, but his parents continued arguing.

"So doing it somewhere else would be okay?" Ron countered.

"It just begs the question, how many times has he brought girls back here? How many other naked slags were in my son's bed? Oh wipe that smirk off of your face!" she glared as she saw the glint of pride in Ron's eyes.

"What smirk?"

"The one that clearly says you want to clap him on the back and tell him, 'good job, son!'" Hermione mocked.

"Oi!" Hugo was going to make sure he was heard this time. Both of his parent's heads swiveled toward him. "Mum, if it makes you feel better, I normally do not bring her back here. And she's not a slag. She's my girlfriend. Has been for over a year now."

Ron beamed at his son. "See, Mione?"

"Then why is she here now and why haven't we ever met her before or even heard of her?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

Hugo glanced at his watch and said, "I would be happy to explain that to you, Mum, but she'll probably be waking up soon and I want to have some food ready for her."

Hermione and Ron were left looking dumbstruck in the library. "Did he tell _you _that he was seeing someone?" she demanded of her husband.

"No. I had no idea."

"Why wouldn't he tell us that he had a girlfriend?"

The sounds of cupboards opening and closing met their ears, and a minute later the unmistakable sounds of sizzling bacon. "Why is he cooking her breakfast, that's what I want to know. He didn't make us breakfast," Ron grumbled, thinking of the measly cereal he'd eaten that morning.

Hermione rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to make a retort but then an unfamiliar voice reached their ears. "Hugo?" It was the girl! She must be coming downstairs!

"In the kitchen!" Hugo yelled. The girl followed the sound of his voice, took a right at the bottom of the steps, and entered the kitchen. Ron and Hermione scrambled to eavesdrop on the pair of them.

Peeking around the doorway into the kitchen, they could watch their son interact with his supposed girlfriend. Hugo grinned as she entered the kitchen, wearing the clothes she'd arrived in the night before. "I see you fixed your shirt," he tugged at the hem.

"I couldn't very well walk out of here wearing it with a big rip down the middle, could I? What are you making?"

"Just bacon and eggs," Hugo went to her and bent over to kiss her as he was so much taller than she was. Carefully, he lifted her by the hips and set her bum on the counter next to the stove. From this new angle, Ron and Hermione could finally see her face.

"Oh Godric!" Hermione gasped in horror.

"What?" whispered a baffled Ron.

"That's _Heather_!"

"Merlin's pants! It is!"

"What the hell is our son doing with Fred's _wife_?"

"That sounds good," the conversation in the kitchen continued, as they were not privy to the discussion Hugo's parents were having. "But after I eat I have to go home."

Hugo's shoulders visibly tensed as she said this. "Heather, I was meaning to ask…how are things…I mean, er, is Fred treating you alright?"

Heather smiled fondly and reached a hand out to ruffle his hair. "You know Fred, he wouldn't hurt a bowtruckle."

"Yeah, well, I'm not in love with a bowtruckle, am I?" Hugo murmured.

"Hu…" Heather beckoned him forward and Hugo stepped between her knees and hugged her tightly. "Don't worry about me. Fred treats me great. He really does. Not as good as you do, of course, but he's my friend and he respects me."

"Have you two…"

"He hasn't touched me since the wedding night."

"Oh thank god," he relaxed against her, holding her even tighter.

As he pulled himself together and continued making breakfast Heather watched silently. "Thanks," she said when he handed her a full plate of food. "Not just for breakfast, but for last night, too."

Just then toast popped up out of the toaster. "Peach jam," they both said at the same time. Hugo knew exactly what she liked for breakfast. "Without the crusts," he added with a wink. Heather nodded.

"Would you come over to my flat tonight? As much as I loved waking up in your bed for a change, I feel awkward being with you in your parent's house."

Hugo chuckled as her words reminded him of what his mother had said. "You liked waking up in my bed?" he teased smugly.

"I did," she said, completely unashamed. "It smells like you."

"Love, you smell like me," he told her cockily.

Heather blushed lightly and they moved to the small kitchen table to eat breakfast together. When they finished, Heather flicked her wand at the dirty dishes and they began to wash themselves. "Alright, I guess I'll be on my way."

"Do you want me to take you home?" Hugo offered.

"No," Heather was smiling at him. Her Hugo. So chivalrous. "Fred still doesn't know who it is that I'm seeing and I'd really rather keep it that way."

"Alright, but at least use the Floo. I don't want you to fly all around the country on a broomstick. Speaking of which, it's still up in my room. I'll bring it over to your flat tonight."

"Okay," she stretched up to kiss his jaw. "Which way is the Floo?"

"Through here. Also, my parents were probably listening to us this whole time, so if you see them, just ignore them."

"What?" she cried. "Your parents! Hugo!"

"It's okay, Heather. They're my parents. I trust them."

"But your mum works for Magical Law Enforcement! They're already thinking about amending the marriage law because so many people are unhappy with it! This is just more proof that so many wizards and witches are ignoring Ministry laws!"

"Heather, my mum's not like that. She wouldn't do anything to purposefully hurt me, and she's against the marriage law altogether."

She nodded, believing him, and Ron and Hermione practically fell over each other as they hurried to duck into the hallway and hide as Hugo led Heather into the sitting room for her to use the Floo network.

"I love you, Hugo, see you tonight."

"Love you, Heather."

And she was gone.

…..

"Amending the marriage law?" Ron asked curiously as the three of them sat around the dining room table. Hugo knew he had some explaining to do but was surprised to find that the first thing on his dad's mind was the marriage law.

"Yes, they are considering adding a clause that forces all married couples to have a baby. I'm not sure of all of the details, but that's what Heather told me."

"Hermione?" Ron questioned. "Why didn't you know about this?"

"I did," she replied evenly. "Before I was pulled from the committee."

"What?" her husband and son screeched.

Hermione huffed and folded her arms over her chest. "They've been talking about amending the marriage law for a while because so many people are opposed to it. Before they could get very far into the discussions, every person who was on the committee and had personal ties to this issue were removed. Any parent who had children subjected to the law or any persons who were subjected to it themselves. It was considered a bias. Since Rose had to marry Scorpius, I wasn't allowed to be privy to this case."

"Bullocks," Ron hissed. "Absolute bullocks."

"Enough about the marriage law. I'm really close to a few of the people who are working on amending it and I do not think that they will go as far as forcing the couples to procreate. What I want to discuss is Hugo's relationship with Heather."

Hugo had already decided that morning that he needed to talk to his parents about this. Scorpius had helped and they were keeping up a steady correspondence in owls, but he needed the advice and support of his parents. "We started seeing each other at the beginning of last summer," Hugo recited, sounding like he'd rehearsed it. "We ran into each other in Hogsmeade and she didn't recognize me at first. We got to talking and it turned out we had a lot in common. I asked to see her again and she agreed because we really liked each other. Once she found out who I was and my age, she became really concerned since she's three years older than me. We decided to keep our relationship a secret until I was of age."

Hugo paused, waiting expectantly for the questions he knew they were dying to ask. "You said that you don't normally bring her back here, but I got the impression that last night wasn't exactly the first time you two did anything, so where do you normally meet?"

"Her apartment in Hogsmeade. Which she kept even after the wedding as a place for us to be together."

"Fred knows about this?"

"He knows that she's dating someone else, but he doesn't know who."

"Does he support this?"

"Yes, he does. He has a girlfriend, too. They're just friends, Mum. The Ministry forced them to marry but they've decided that they don't consider themselves to be married."

"I can't say that I blame them," said Hermione shortly, surprising both boys in the room. Hugo had thought his mum would go barmy at the idea of Hugo with a married woman.

"You don't?" asked Ron.

"Of course not. When the Ministry declared Harry Potter their number one enemy did we agree? When they made Umbridge Headmaster of Hogwarts did we consider her to be any type of reliable authority figure? It's all in perception, Ronald, which is why Magical Law Enforcement is having such a hard time controlling this law."

"It's not just in perception, Mione. Heather is magically bonded to Fred. She can never marry Hugo even if they did end up lasting that long."

Both of them knew that marriage bonds were special. Hermione was more attuned to her husband's magical core and there were certain intimacies that married couples couldn't attain without the magical bonds. But they weren't necessary. After all, muggles weren't magically bonded.

"It will be hard," said Hermione evenly. "Your father is right. Heather and Fred have an intimate connection that you will never be able to have with her. But that's not the only thing that matters. There aren't any romantic feelings between them and that weakens the bonds. That being said, if you still want to continue seeing her, we'll support you."

…..

After Heather had left, Fred wrote a note to Ophelia. Before he sent it out, however, he tore it up and instead wrote one to Rose.

_Lovely cousin, _

_I wanted the chance to better explain what you walked in on yesterday. Please come to my place as soon as possible. Heather won't be home tonight I would like the chance to speak with you in person. Hope you're doing well. And Scorpius. _

_Love,_

_Fred_

He didn't have to wait long before the fireplace lit up green and Rose came striding out. Without a word, she hugged Fred tightly around the middle and mumbled into his chest. "I'm sorry I said you should be ashamed. I'm sorry that I made you feel bad. I had just had a fight with Scorpius, I was in a foul mood, and I was so surprised. Also, I still don't think it's right for Ophelia to see you without being honest with Liam."

"Aw, Rosie," Fred squeezed her gently. "You don't have anything to apologize for. You were partially right. Ophelia and I discussed it and she's going to try to bring up the issue with Liam before their wedding. What can I say? I'm a selfish prat and I want what I want. But you should know that this isn't just a meaningless affair. I _really _fancy her."

"Do you love her?"

"You know what? Sometimes I think I do."

"I want you to be happy, but I can't help but feel that this is going to end badly, Fred. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"It hurts no matter what, Rose. It hurts when she comes and spends the night with me and Heather is just down the hall. It hurts when she has to leave to meet up with Liam. It hurts when she's not with me. It hurts all the fucking time, but it would hurt even more if I stopped seeing her."

"I'm so sorry, Fred. You're not the selfish prat, I am! Here I was all pissed off because I had to marry someone I didn't love, but you had to marry someone you didn't love while being in love with someone else! I'm such an arse!"

"No, you're not," Fred chuckled and sat down, with Rose on his lap. "You didn't know. Nobody knew."

"I should have asked."

"Ha! What would you have said? 'Oi, Fred, do you happen to be involved with anyone else?' Come on, Rose, none of you suspected anything before you accidentally walked in on us snogging."

"So nobody else knows? Not even James?"

"Well, Heather knows, of course, and I'm assuming she's told her mystery bloke that I'm seeing someone else."

"Her mystery bloke?" asked Rose. "Don't you know who she's seeing?"

"No, she kept her old flat and they meet up there. The only thing she's said about him is that he's a muggle-born who she's been seeing for a year."

"Well, hey, whatever works for you guys, you know?"

There was a pause as Fred seemed to be the one comforting Rose, rubbing her shoulder blades softly. They were both avoiding the elephant in the room. They'd both received letters from their Uncle Percy and they both knew that they could be forced to become parents much sooner than either of them wanted to be.

In an attempt to keep that subject at bay for a while longer, Fred said, "I heard you visited Azkaban."

"Yeah, I did," Rose blushed a bit, like she did when she was hiding something.

"Want to talk about it?"

"No."

"What did Nathan want?"

"To apologize."

"That's it?"

"Yes. He didn't think that Scorpius or Norah or Dom would agree to see him so he asked me. He wanted me to convey his apologizes to all of them."

"And did you?"

"Of course."

Fred knew there was more than she was saying, but he was so glad that she wasn't mad at him anymore that he decided not to press the issue.

…

After leaving Fred's place, Rose went to see Norah. Luck was in her favor as she knocked on the door to discover that Albus wasn't there. "Hi, Rose, what are you doing here so late?" asked Norah sleepily as she pulled the door open and ushered her friend inside.

"I had to speak with you," Rose could tell that she'd probably woken Norah, who was in pajamas and looked rather tired. But this was important. "I wanted to tell you about my visit with Nathan."

"You already told me. You said that he wanted to apologize to us for everything that's happened," said Norah with just a hint of anger. Yes, Rose had definitely woken her up.

"That's true, but there was more," Rose had to know. This had been eating at her for almost a week now. "Do you think your father would be capable of putting the _Imperius Curse_ on your brother?"

…

**A/N: To answer reviews, no, Rose did not tell Scorpius about what Nathan said. All she told him was that Nathan wanted to apologize for what he'd done. I probably should have written that part into the story, but just didn't think of it. Also! The reason that Scorpius addressed her by her maiden name, 'Rose Nymphadora Weasley' is because, in a way, that's still how he sees her. Especially when she displays that Weasley temper.**

**Do you think the amendment to the marriage law is going to pass? If not, what else could the Ministry do to fix the problems the law has caused? I'm curious to hear where you think the story is heading!**

**You are all amazing! **

**MofDA**


	23. Truth Will Out

**A/N: For those of you who follow some of my other stories, you might see a trend. That trend is this: for each of my stories, there is one central scene that I envision in my head that I form the entire story around; it could be one conversation or one revelation or one event. For this story there was more than just one of those and most of them will happen in the NEXT chapter. **

**Which explains why THIS chapter was so difficult for me to write. I had to set everything up just right for what's to come. I hope it's okay. This chapter feels a little choppy to me, what do you all think? **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WARNING: Language, mention of abuse, and light sexual references.**

….

"Is he _capable _of it? Absolutely. Would he actually do it? I'm not so sure," Norah replied tiredly as they sat down on the sofa together.

"Why not?"

"Well, for one thing he wouldn't need to. Nathan always did whatever our father wanted him to. For another, I can't see my dad taking that sort of risk. If he were caught, he would be sent to Azkaban."

"True, but isn't it much more likely that Nathan would get caught doing something and thrown into Azkaban for it without question seeing as how he doesn't exactly have a clean record?"

"Rose, what is this all about? Did Nathan say something to you while you were there? Because if he did, I can almost guarantee it was a lie." Normally Rose would have been in complete agreement with this. But there was something so genuine and honest about Nathan's confession that day in his cell.

"He told me that your father put him under the curse and forced him to do what he did to both of us."

"I wouldn't believe that," Norah shook her head with a frown. "Nathan has hit me before, and I've heard rumors about him hitting past girlfriends. I always knew those things would escalate the older he got, like my dad. I knew that someday he would end up in Azkaban for going too far."

"I just…I think this might be worth looking into," Rose said desperately. If she was wrong, she would feel like such a fool. Plus, part of her hoped very much that the man her cousin had to marry really hadn't been acting of his own accord when he attacked Rose and Norah.

"I'm sorry, but I just don't think there's any truth to it."

….

"Mum? Can I talk to you?" Rose very rarely wanted parental advice. Normally she did things her own way and that was that. But this was something that her mother would know much more about than her.

"Of course," Hermione Weasley motioned to the chair in front of her desk. They were at her office at the Ministry and it was the middle of a busy day.

Rose sat down, smoothed her skirt, and asked, "Are they going to pass the amendment to the marriage law?"

Hermione surveyed Rose for a minute before saying quietly, "I don't know."

"But this doesn't make any sense! How could they possibly regulate such a law? Aren't there other ways they could help couples get along? Why isn't anyone shooting down this idea right away?"

"All of the finer details are being worked out by a special committee. While I'm not privy to all of the things discussed, from what I have heard the Ministry would forbid use of contraceptives and set a minimum number of times each couple would have to engage in intercourse each week. While this does not guarantee conception, it would definitely up the odds. Before you ask, the answer is yes, I do think it would be possible for them to monitor such things. To answer your second question, there _have_ been other ideas submitted to the Marriage Law Committee including marriage counseling and uses of special spells and potions to help the couples connect better and understand each other. Nobody is shooting this idea down right away because it is a viable option. It would also help increase the depleting numbers in the wizarding population. They would be 'killing two birds with one stone,' as the muggles say. I am no longer on that committee because I have personal attachments in the case. However, I trust several people on the committee to make the right decisions. Kingsley Shacklebolt, Ernie Macmillan, and Dennis Creevey to name a few."

Rose didn't say a word. She stood, turned, and began striding toward the exit. "Rose! Where are you going?"

"To write a very strongly worded article!"

….

_Hello to all of my faithful readers. Normally my articles are full of mirth and humor. But not today. Today there is too much anger in my veins to keep the bitterness out of my writing. Today is a day that I have decided things have gone too far. Today I will be the first to publicly voice my opinions on the workings of our Ministry. _

_ The Ministry of Magic has a special committee comprised of several prominent workers in Magical Law Enforcement who are currently working on solutions to the problems created by the Marriage Law. The solution they are currently leaning toward will force each married couple to do their best to produce children. That's right, for those of you who haven't heard, the Ministry now thinks they have the right to command their subjects to procreate. _

_ First, allow me to say that the Marriage Law which has been in effect for less than six months has already been causing a great deal of trouble to the Ministry. While some couples are working hard to make their marriages work and are truly happy, others are miserable. If you are miserable with the person you are married to, why the bloody hell would you want to have a child with him/her? _

_ Secondly, there are other solutions! Couples counseling, allowing divorce in certain cases, better communication, or even spells and potions! Making babies is not the only way to solve these problems and, in all likelihood, it would just end up causing more problems. Already unhappy couples will have more to argue about and we will be taking a huge step backward instead of the steps forward that we need to take._

_ As a whole, the wizarding community has been accepting of the marriage law because arranged marriages are common in our society. Most couples who were already dating were paired together for marriage so most of the couples were strangely happy about this law. However, this is where we need to draw the line. Not when the Ministry knocks on your door and demands you have at least X number of children. Not when the Ministry takes this even further and begins to make attendance at Hogwarts mandatory for said children like they did when Voldemort was behind such ridiculous notions. Not before they do anything else. The time is now. _

_ We have already let them take too much. We have already let them take away too many of our freedoms. Have we forgotten, my fellow witches and wizards, that the Ministry exists to serve us and not the other way around? Have we forgotten that we have individual rights and freedoms? Write to your Ministry, participate in protests, and oppose this absurd proposition! Let them know that we have had ENOUGH._

_ I am done being stepped on like a doormat. I am done letting others dictate my life. I can only hope that you are all with me._

_ Yours Most Humbly, _

_Modest Monica_

…

"I love it," said Scorpius honestly. "It was a brilliant move to call Voldemort by name and compare his laws to this one. I bet that will really open some people's eyes."

"You have to remember that hardly anybody knows what the Ministry is considering. And I admit, I have a…erm, ulterior motive behind it also," Rose blushed and Scorpius looked at her curiously, waiting for further explanation. "If people become angry enough, they will force the Ministry to back down off of this. This will give unhappy couples a chance to adjust and do their best while the Ministry reevaluates the situation."

"What do you know about unhappy couples?" Scorpius had done his best to keep Rose from finding out about Hugo and Heather, as he had promised his brother-in-law that he would not tell Rose. But why was she suddenly concerned about the miserable ones? Had she stumbled upon a letter from Hugo to Scorpius?

Rose hadn't told Scorpius about Fred because she was giving Ophelia a chance to come clean to Liam. Rose knew that Scorpius's loyalty was to Liam, not Fred, and she didn't blame him for that. But Fred was her cousin and she would do her best to protect him. "I know that Fred and Heather aren't very happy," she settled on neutrally; at least it was truthful! "And Fred is one of my best friends. I really believe that if he had to have children with Heather, they would only grow to resent each other even more."

"I know. I always think about Liam and Adara. They really deserve to be together, but because of the Ministry, they can't be. It's not fair."

An owl swooped into the open window and dropped a letting onto Rose's lap before flying out again. "Who is it from?" asked Scorpius. Despite being married, Rose and Scorpius led very separate lives. She didn't always include him on what was going on in her life and how her family was. Apparently being independent had been too deeply ingrained in her for her to be very sharing with him.

"James," said Rose, knowing instinctively that her husband felt left-out. "That was his owl. His owl is a male named Barnabas."

"Barnabas?"

"Yes, Barnabas the barn owl," Rose said absently as she read the contents of the letter. Oh dear Merlin, what should she do now? The letter read:

_Rose,_

_I think that Fred's wife is cheating on him. I heard from a reliable source that she still has her flat in Hogsmeade and that she occasionally spends nights there. I do not want to go to Fred without proof, so would you be willing to go with me and spy on her place? We can bring Al and Louis along, too, if you'd like, but I need you to come with me because you're the quietest, sneakiest, and smartest. _

_Love, _

_James_

"What does it say?" Rose gave a startled jump when Scorpius spoke.

"He just wants me to stop by for a visit," she felt instantly guilty as Scorpius gave her a genuine smile.

"You should go," he told her. "You haven't spent a lot of time with your family lately. I'll stay here, maybe watch a movie or two, and I'll see you tonight."

"Okay," she kissed his cheek and rushed to Godric's Hollow.

…

Now she was in trouble. Did she betray Fred's confidences by telling James the truth? That both Heather and Fred agreed to not be monogamous? Or did she let him carry on like an idiot and investigate Heather's supposed affair? Then again, Rose was curious herself as to who Heather was secretly seeing. Fred said that he didn't care, but was curious.

The best option that Rose could think of was to get Fred involved with this little ragtag team of investigators. When she reached James's house, Leila wasn't there. James was pacing worriedly in front of his fireplace with his hands locked behind his back.

"What took you so long? Why didn't you Floo?" he scolded as she let herself into the house.

Honestly, it was because she needed time to think, but she couldn't tell James that. "I fancied a walk."

"I tell you that our best friend's wife might be cheating on him and you took your time getting your arse over here because you _fancied a walk_?"

"Yes."

"Women! I'll never understand you! Alright, Rose, hurry up and transfigure your clothes. They need to be black. You should also be wearing trousers instead of that dress, in case we have to climb."

"Climb?" she balked. "What the hell will we be climbing?"

"I don't know what floor she lives on, so we might have to climb onto the roof of the building next to her flat so we can listen. I have these Extendable Ears, but I don't think they would reach very high."

"Listen, James, I think that maybe Fred should come with us."

"What?"

"Well you said that you didn't want to concern him without proof, right? What better proof would there be than seeing it with his own eyes?"

James considered this. "Alright, good point. Let's get over there." This time they used the Floo.

Rose went first and was relieved to find that Fred was there, alone, working in his study on a potion. The simmering cauldron had Rose backing up a few steps for safety reasons. "It won't explode," said Fred with a chuckle.

Before she had the chance to warn him about why she was there, James joined them. "Fred! Mate. Rose and I have something really serious we need to discuss with you."

Fred frowned, looking confused and nervous as he sat down on top of his desk, next to the cauldron that was now startling to bubble. "What's wrong?"

"I think that Heather might be cheating on you. She still has her flat in Hogsmeade and I've heard rumors that she stays there sometimes."

Fred glanced up at Rose. She wore a neutral expression that clearly said, 'You might as well tell him the truth.'

Grudgingly, Fred averted his eyes and said, "I know. Yes, she is cheating on me, but not really. I mean, we're married and she's sleeping with someone else, but I'm okay with that. We agreed that we can date other people. It's not like we chose to get married. It's not like we actually want to be together."

James's expression changed from concerned, to dumbfounded, to…envious? "Are you kidding me? You're shagging _two_ birds and your wife doesn't care? Damn it, Fred, why are you always so lucky?"

Fred gave a surprised laugh before correcting the misconception. "I'm not having sex with Heather. We had to, on our wedding night, but since then we haven't. We're _just_ friends. What are you saying, anyway? Do you _want _someone else besides Leila?"

"No," James answered honestly. "Even though I have entertained the idea of a threesome…" he shook his head. "I just meant that for you and others in your situation, you know, who aren't in love, it would be ideal to have several girls ready and willing to shag you while knowing about each other."

"Guys, can we please not talk about this? Scorpius and I are completely monogamous and happy about it. Stop making me nervous that I'm not enough for him," Rose snapped.

"From the way he's been strutting around, I sometimes worry he's not enough for you," James teased. "Do you ever let that bloke out of bed?"

Rose turned scarlet, "Of course I do! I'm here with you now, aren't I?"

"That's very true. Speaking of which, why don't we get back to the topic at hand? Where is your _friend_ tonight, Fred? With her boyfriend?"

"Yes, actually, I believe she is. I told her to keep her flat in Hogsmeade because she insists on being all secretive about him."

"Well I do just so happen to have these spectacular omnioculars handy for this occasion. We could always pop on over to Hogsmeade and see for ourselves who Heather is with," James surprised everyone when he extracted three pairs of omnioculars from his 'spy gear bag' as it was clearly labeled.

"We can't just barge over there! She has a right to privacy and if she doesn't want to tell anyone who she is dating then that's her right-"

Rose was interrupted swiftly by Fred. "Honestly, Rose, you were going to go spy on Heather in those clothes? Here, hold still while I transfigure them. They should be black. And I'm going to turn that skirt into a pair of trousers. For Merlin's sake, woman, what if we have to climb something?"

James gave her an 'I told you so' look and Rose slapped a hand to her forehead at their combined idiocy.

…

The awkward trio, dressed from head-to-toe in black, stuck to the late evening shadows in the village of Hogsmeade as they made their way toward Heather's flat. Rose wasn't sure if this was a very good idea, but the logical side of her brain was silenced quickly by her desire for adventure.

This was something she'd missed greatly during her last year at Hogwarts. Sneaking around the castle with James and Fred. The only things missing were the Invisibility Cloak, which was currently in Al's possession, and the Marauder's Map. But they didn't need the Map as it didn't show the village of Hogsmeade.

Now look at them! All married, graduated, on their way to really growing up. Rose felt a pang of nostalgia as James glanced up at the building and nodded; this was where Heather lived. After skimming around the ground floor, it was deduced that her flat must be on the second level.

James and Fred sometimes liked to pretend to be muggles and do things the muggle way. This was no exception. There was, as James predicted, a building close to the place where Heather lived that they could scale. Fred and James silently knelt down and braced their hands in a pose Rose was familiar with.

She wedged her right foot into James's hands and her left foot into Fred's. "On three," Fred hissed, "One, two, THREE!" he and James both hoisted Rose up and flung her high. The upper half of her body landed with a soft thump on the tiled roof and she wriggled her lower half, shimmying herself onto the roof.

"Here comes the bag!" James's 'spy gear bag' came up out of nowhere and Rose caught it easily. After digging through it she managed to find one pair of omnioculars and one Extendable Ear. With the rubber end in her own ear, she watched as the other end stretched to the window of the adjoining building.

"The shades are drawn," Rose whispered down the boys, "so I can't see into the flat, but the window is cracked open. Oh, hold on!" she could hear something. Yes, this was definitely Heather's flat. "We have the right window, boys, I just heard Heather say that she was going to get a drink. Come on, hurry up!" Rose glared down at the two dark forms, as night was quickly upon them and it was becoming difficult for her to see.

James took several steps back then took a running leap at the building. He firmly planted one foot on the brick wall and propelled himself up, hooking his hands onto the ledge and hoisting himself onto the roof with Rose. Fred mimicked James's actions exactly and the three of them huddled together with their Extendable Ears and omnioculars.

"I think they're snogging," said James conversationally as the three of them heard unmistakable sounds of saliva being exchanged. Rose made a face and Fred looked thoughtful, as if he was a professor who was grading Heather and her boyfriend on their kissing techniques.

Then came the rustling clothing. "We're not going to listen to them shag, are we?" she asked.

"Why not?" Fred argued.

"Is that considering cheating?" James wondered casually. "Because I don't know if I should be listening to two other people have sex while I'm a married man!"

"What's happened to you two?" Fred asked sadly. "So law-abiding and upright now. What happened to my little troublemakers?"

"Even you have to admit that this might just be crossing a line," Rose scrunched up her nose and pulled the rubber end of her Extendable Ear away so she couldn't hear the sounds from inside the flat.

"Listen!" Fred hissed and Rose shoved it back in.

Heather was saying quietly, "Oh! Do that again! That thing with your tongue…oh, Merlin, yes!" The man she was with chuckled throatily as he continued _whatever_ it was that he was doing.

"Damn it, I thought she was going to say his name!"

"Maybe his name really _is _Merlin," Rose said cheekily. The boys rolled their eyes.

Ignoring Rose's lame joke, Fred said, "If a girl is that vocal and they're not even shagging yet, then she's probably going to be a screamer, and if she's a screamer…"

"…then she'll definitely scream his name," James finished the thought for him.

"Exactly."

"How do you know they're not shagging yet?" asked Rose.

"Trust me, you'd hear different sounds than the ones we're hearing. Now be quiet and start listening for her to say a name!"

They were all silent for a few seconds. Fred and James both appeared to be taking this seriously, as if they'd actually been given a secret mission from the Minister himself while Rose was fighting the urge to drop her Extendable Ear and run away. Things were getting heated in there now; there was panting, sighing, a deep groan from the bloke, and a girlish mew from Heather.

"They're definitely shagging," said Rose, looking unnerved.

"No they're not," James and Fred said together. Then there was a simultaneous cry from Heather and a gasp from the man. Noises that could be heard now were louder and unmistakably skin against skin. "Okay, _now_ they're shagging," Fred had the decency to look uncomfortable as he made this announcement. But how different was this, really, than when the boys at Hogwarts could overhear their fellow dorm mates shagging? How different was this than living in a flat and being able to hear the people on the other side of the wall fucking against it? This wasn't the first time any of them had overheard two people having sex. It was just the first time they'd intentionally listened in.

"Merlin's saggy balls!" Rose snarled, she hadn't wanted to hear this!

"Oh! Uh!" Yes, Heather was a screamer. Rose was just about to drop her Extendable Ear (the only reason she still clutched it to her head was because she'd been frozen in shock) when Heather screamed, "Oh, Hugo!"

"HUGO?!" James, Fred, and Rose yelled all at the same time.

The noises from inside the flat stopped. Heather squeaked, there was the thudding of footsteps, and the curtains framing the window were yanked open. Hugo stood gaping at them, naked from his waist up (which was all they could see of him, but they rightly assumed the rest of him was naked as well). His chest glistened with sweat, his hair was mused, and he was just slightly out of breath.

His girlfriend stood behind him, blocked from view by his body, peeking up over his shoulder to see who had caught them. "What the fuck?" Hugo growled.

"_You're_ the guy that's been fucking my wife?" was the first eloquent thing that came out of Fred's mouth.

"Ah, shit," Hugo grimaced and scratched the back of his head. "Can we talk about this later guys? We're kind of busy in here," Hugo pulled the curtains shut.

"AT LEAST PUT UP AN _IMPERVIUS _CHARM SO WE DON'T HAVE TO LISTEN TO IT!" Rose called to them.

…

One hour later, Hugo, Rose, Fred, and James sat at a table in the Hog's Head. Heather had been too embarrassed to join them and no one blamed her. They drank their butterbeers in silence until Rose cleared her throat and said, "Let me just say that I think I will forever be scarred by the sounds I heard coming from that flat tonight."

Hugo gave her an apologetic smirk. "Sorry, Sis, but nobody told you to spy on us."

"We just wanted to know who she was seeing! Now it's obvious why she was embarrassed about it!" Rose smacked him upside the head to emphasize her statement.

"Fred? Say something?" Hugo prodded.

Fred shrugged. At first he looked angry, like he was about to lunge across the table and throttle his cousin. But then something in his expression cracked and Rose realized that he was doing his best to not laugh at the situation. Apparently he couldn't take it any longer because he suddenly burst into raucous laughter.

"I can't!" Fred was laughing too hard to speak in complete sentences. "Believe! That you two! Oh…Godric! This is hilarious!"

"How is this funny?" Hugo asked Rose and James but they both shrugged.

"I'm a bit relieved to be honest," said Fred once he's calmed down. "I was worried that Heather might be dating some tosser or a bloke who was married and not telling his wife about their affair. I'm glad it's you, mate," Fred clapped Hugo on the shoulder. "Heather's one of my best friends."

"I know."

"Take care of her, yeah?"

Hugo snorted. "I have been for over a year."

"Seriously?"

"Yes, we've been dating for a while now but she didn't want to tell anyone because of the age difference. I'm not even seventeen yet."

"Ah, yeah, I understand."

At the same time, all four of them brought their bottles to their mouths and took a few long gulps. None of them wanted to discuss this anymore.

…

"We're getting married tomorrow," Albus sang happily as he enveloped Norah into his arms and kissed her neck. She giggled and leaned into him.

"You'd better get out of here, Mr. Potter," she teased. "You're not supposed to see the bride the day of the wedding and we don't have too long before midnight."

"Alright," despite his word of agreement, he snuggled into her even more, molding his body to fit around hers.

"Albus," she whined, wanting him more each moment, but knowing that he had to leave for the sake of tradition.

"Fine, I'm going," he kissed her passionately on the lips and was gone. Norah sighed. She couldn't do this. She was so close to having everything she'd ever wanted and she couldn't go through with it. At least not without him accepting her; all of her. She'd barely touched on the topic of her abusive upbringing and she'd never told him that she had requested him to marry.

So she told him the only way she could bring herself to; in writing.

…

_Albus, _

_Before we get married there are some things that I had to get off of my chest. You know that I had an abusive childhood but I don't think you know the extent of it. My father was an alcoholic who would come home every night and abuse my mother, my brother, and me. Mum never tried to stop him from hitting us. Sometimes I think she liked it because it meant that he wasn't hitting her._

_She would threaten us with it sometimes, too. If we misbehaved or if she got mad at us, she would tell us that when our dad got home she was going to tell him what 'awful little brats' we were. Nathan got it worse than I did most of the time, but not always. When I turned eleven and started Hogwarts I was sorted into Hufflepuff. That was the first time Nathan raised a hand to me. _

_For a long time I didn't blame him. Violence was the only way we knew to express emotions from our parent's examples. However, I was luckier than Nathan. Aunt Astoria and Uncle Draco let me spend all the time I wanted at their mansion. On more than one occasion I stayed at Scorpius's place for longer than a month at a time. Nathan was always invited as well, but he rarely came with me. I think that it made him bitter to see how well Scorpius was treated by his parents while ours were so horrible to us. _

_I noticed you right away. At Hogwarts. You were clearly adored by so many and I envied you more than I had envied Scorpius. You had siblings and cousins and so many friends! You were so genuinely nice that I couldn't help liking you. I don't think I fancied you then, but there was definitely some attraction and maybe even a bit of misplaced affection._

_As I grew up I made a place for myself in the world. I studied with Mr. Ollivander, I earned good grades, I made friends at Hogwarts. I wasn't happy but I was content. My plans for after graduation were all in place. I was finally going to be free. Then the letters came. You know the ones. The marriage law. But I received one extra letter that you didn't. _

_Purebloods were allowed to put down three names; names of the witches/wizards they wanted to marry who were of a different blood status. I could request any bloke in the whole wizarding world who wasn't a pureblood, or married, or underage! You were the first person that came to mind. The only person, really. I was shy and didn't know many blokes. I tried dating Lorcan in the past, but things didn't work out and he was a pureblood. _

_I wrote your name down as my first choice. You were the only person I could think of. The only person who I trusted enough. And I didn't even really know you! I know it probably sounds a bit creepy, but I just knew that you were a good wizard. I knew that you would treat me right, how I should have been treated my whole life. I knew that if someday I ever wanted children, I wanted them to have a home different than the one I had. _

_When the Ministry wrote and told me that they'd actually put us together, as per my request, I was shocked! I was scared and so nervous but also very happy. You have no idea how surprised and overjoyed I was to discover that you were all I could have asked for in a potential husband and so much more. _

_I've fallen in love with you, which is something I didn't anticipate. I've never been in love before, but so far it's pretty amazing. Even if the Ministry wasn't forcing us to marry, I hope that one day we would have ended up here anyways. Maybe we would have met somewhere else at another time and gotten to know each other and still would have gotten married. I like to hope so. _

_I'm sorry for possibly taking away your chances of being with someone else who you might have wanted more. But I hope that in time you can forgive me and grow to love me, too. _

_Love Always, _

_Norah_

…..

_Norah, _

_I know that you'd kill me if I came over since it's after midnight and we're not supposed to see each other until you're walking down the aisle, but I had to reply to your letter immediately. _

_First of all, let me just say that I would gladly chuck your mum, dad, and brother into Azkaban for the abuse they did to you. However that is outside of my control and I am so glad that you're out of there now. _

_Do you want to know the truth? When we were at Hogwarts I noticed you, too. Like you said, my family was close and you were best friends with Lucy. I thought you were sweet and brave. I sometimes wished that I could be more like you; quiet, introverted, keep to myself. But when you're a Potter that's just not an option. You could blend in and go unnoticed when you wanted. Except by me, apparently. _

_I was shocked when the Ministry gave me your name. I'd never spoken to you before, and to be honest, I don't know if I would have if the Ministry hadn't forced me to. I've always been interested in getting to know you but I never thought you'd want someone like me and I never thought to actually go for it. Like you said, I'd like to think that we would have ended up here eventually anyway, but we'll never know. _

_The important thing is that we're there now. We're both there, Nor. We're both in love. _

_I love you and I'll see you at the altar. _

_Yours, _

_Albus_

…

After a good night of sleep, Albus Potter woke up feeling nervous knots in the pit of his stomach. Norah could have requested any bloke she wanted and she'd chosen him. He wondered if others had put his name down. He was so lucky to have been dealt this hand in life. He was so lucky that Norah had been so smart. Smarter than him at any rate.

To get ready for his wedding, he went to James's house. Unsurprisingly, Rose was there. His best friend. Knowing that Albus would need space, Rose ushered everyone out except for her and James. "Nervous, Al?" she asked.

"Yeah," he breathed, his palms were sweaty. Did Norah really love him? And did she really tell him for the first time in a letter? Merlin, last night barely felt real. Was this all a dream? He hoped not.

"Don't be, Norah is amazing and you're amazing and you two are going to get married and having amazing babies and live happily ever after," Rose brushed off his shoulders and smoothed down his dress robes as she spoke.

"But the babies will come when we're ready for them and not when the Ministry tells us to have them," said Al seriously. "Did you read that Modest Monica article? Damn, that girl seems to always know everything that's going on! She was spot on about the Ministry though and a lot of people have listened to her advice. Dad said that Kingsley is getting owls by the hundreds. All of them angry about the baby thing. It's amazing how much power that writer has."

Rose pulled her most innocent face. "Yes, I did read what she wrote. Brilliant witch she is."

"One of these days someone is going to figure out who she is. I wonder if people would still listen to her if her identity was revealed," he mused. James and Rose shrugged.

"Stop fidgeting, Al, I'm trying to pin this bloody boutonniere on your lapel," James growled.

"Can I ask you guys something?" Albus asked nervously.

"Course you can," said Rose distractedly as she applied her lipstick and tugged at her dress.

"How did you guys react when Scorpius and Leila told you that they chose you? Did it freak you out or were you okay with it?"

"What?" asked Rose in confusion.

James frowned and replied. "I was surprised. I was a bit mad that she didn't consult me first, because we were best mates, but I'm definitely happy she did it."

"Did what?" Rose asked, her hands on her hips, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"Blimey," said James with wide eyes. "Scorpius didn't tell you?"

"Didn't tell me what?" Rose was yelling now.

"The purebloods chose who they wanted to marry," said James. "Which means that Scorpius chose to marry you, Rose, before you two were assigned to each other."

….

**A/N: Before any of you ask, YES, Rose will be upset about this. Probably more upset than you think she will be because of something that was said in a previous chapter. Can anyone spot it? **

**The next chapter is going to be jam packed with drama so be ready for that! I don't know when it will be up, I haven't written it yet, but it might take a few days because I'm not sure how long it will be. **

**Any predictions as to what's coming up in future chapters? A few reviewers are actually pretty close on their guesses! You guys are great!**

**Yours,**

**MofDA**


	24. Everything Comes Undone

**Disclaimer: Nothing is mine**

**WARNING: Language and mentions of abuse in this chapter**

…..

Scorpius Malfoy was singing quietly to himself while he tied his bowtie. Albus Potter was marrying his cousin today and he was going to look smashing even if he wasn't a member of the wedding party. Norah's only bridesmaid was Lucy and Albus's only groomsman was James.

Rose had left the mansion earlier, deciding to get ready at James's house so she could be there for Al. Rose probably knew Albus better than anyone else in the world did. Scorpius was glad that she'd been spending time with her family lately. It was good for her. But he also wondered when she would start bringing him around her family more. He still hadn't been to one of those infamous Weasley family dinners.

He was tapping his shining dress shoe in time to the song he was singing when there was a _crack_ behind him and his beautiful wife appeared. Her hair was swept up, dangling earrings framed her face, make-up made her big blue eyes really pop, and that dress…sweet Merlin, he couldn't decide where to look as every inch of her looked ravishing.

"Why didn't you tell me?" her voice was a quiet whisper that pierced his very heart. She was hurt. You could hear it in her voice and now that he looked closely he saw that her limbs were shaking.

"Tell you what?" he asked gently, sweetly, as he reached for her. Rose jerked back away from him.

"Why didn't you tell me that this was all some sick joke to you?" anger. Anger was replacing the pain now. Rose hadn't been able to comprehend what James and Albus were telling her at first. But then it clicked. It all clicked.

She remembered Nathan's words in his cell in Azkaban, '_I wanted to marry you because you're fucking fit, your family is rich….we all wanted you_,' she could see it now quite clearly. Scorpius and his Slytherin buddies down in the dungeons making vulgar references about Rose. Each of them talking about her social status, her money, and her body. _'…Scorpius was just the lucky bloke who won_.'

He had won. It had been a game to all of them. An auction. The worst part however, was that Rose had trusted him. She'd let her walls down. All of her walls. She'd let him in. She'd _fallen in love with him_. It had taken getting her heart shattered to realize that she loved him. Because she wouldn't hurt so badly if she didn't love him.

"What are you talking about?" he still didn't understand.

"I get it, I really do," she said scathingly, with only the slightest hitch in her voice. "You had to choose _somebody _right? Why not the fit girl who has a famous family? Why not the girl who would put you in the spotlight? Why not the girl you could manipulate? You make me sick, Malfoy! You and Zabini and Nott and Selwyn and Goyle! Down in those dungeons arguing over who would get to marry me!"

"You know," he said stupidly, unsure of what else to say in that moment.

"Did you think I'd never find out? Were you hoping that I would remain blind and dumb while you reaped all the benefits of our marriage?" He almost wished that she was yelling because he couldn't handle this calm anger. He couldn't handle the disappointment, mistrust, and _hate_ in her soft melodic voice.

"Rose, please, you have to understand, it wasn't like that-"

"Do you know what disgusts me the most? Nathan fucking Zabini was more honest with me than you were! Nathan told me about how all of you Slytherins wanted me for shallow, superficial reasons, which he eagerly listed for me. Were you going to abuse me, too, if I didn't have sex with you whenever you wanted? Because Nathan told me that had been his plan!"

"No! Damn it, Rose, you know I would never do that-"

"How do I know that? How do I believe anything you've said to me at all after such a huge lie?"

"It wasn't a lie, Rose, are you really going to take Nathan's word over mine-"

"Yes, actually, I am, because his version makes a lot more sense after Albus and James told me the truth! That's right, Malfoy, they told me that the purebloods got to request people they wanted to marry and you know what's funny? That fits perfectly with what Zabini was saying about you _winning _me. You're disgusting! How dare you treat me like an object! Like something you can bid on and win!"

"Rose," he growled, trying his best not to sound angry, but she wasn't listening to him! "That's not how I felt, and that's not how-"

"Answer me this: was I your first choice?"

"Yes," Scorpius answered immediately, hoping that this might calm her down.

Instead, it angered her even more. "See? Do you see now, you bastard? _You didn't even know me_. Why else would you have put my name down when you could have chosen anyone? Because I have prominent family members in every branch of wizarding society and a body you wouldn't mind shagging."

"Do you really want to know why I put your name down? I'll tell you-"

She held up her hand to silence him and with horror he realized she was barely holding back tears. Scorpius knew that Rose was a strong person in many ways, including emotionally. If he was making her cry, he was in really deep shit. He had really fucked up. She wasn't going to believe a word he said now because he'd already made it obvious that he had been hiding the truth from her from the start. Honestly, he didn't blame her.

"We don't have time for this," she said as she self-consciously wiped at her eye make-up to make sure she didn't show up at the wedding with mascara-stained cheeks. "My best friend is getting married and we need to be there now."

Before he could say another word, she was gone.

….

"Do you think she's going to make it back in time for the wedding?" Albus asked with worry after she had left.

"Of course she will," James was confident in his assessment. "She wouldn't miss your wedding just to kill Malfoy."

"Do you think that's where she went, then?"

"Obviously. Did you see how mad she was? Malfoy is either currently being castrated in the most painful way Rose could devise or he's dead," James didn't sound very concerned about this.

That was when Harry and Ginny entered the room talking to each other. "…I don't know where he could be," Harry was saying, "he told me he would be here."

"Kingsley is the Minister of Magic, dear, I'm sure he has a lot of important things that could be keeping him. You never know, he might still turn up before the ceremony starts. Or maybe he'll just pop in for the reception."

"Yeah, I reckon," Harry was distraught at the idea of one of his best friends not being at the wedding of his son. But that wasn't what was important right now. Right now the most important focuses were Albus and Norah. "You ready?" Harry asked Al.

"Is it time?" he paled considerably and for a moment Harry was worried that his youngest son was about to vomit all over his shoes.

"Yes, it's time for you to go take your place, the wedding will be starting in a few minutes," Ginny bustled around the room, checking that Al had his boutonniere pinned correctly and that James wasn't hiding any dungbombs in his pockets.

Relaxed by the familiar business-like attitude of his mother, Albus nodded firmly and steeled himself. This was it.

…..

Scorpius was seated beside Rose for two reasons. The first was because it would look highly suspicious if the two of them didn't sit together and the press would notice immediately. The second reason was because these were the seats they had been assigned and led to by the ushers.

Rose sat stiffly beside him, as far away from him as possible. He wouldn't have been surprised if she fell off of her chair because she was on the very edge of her seat, itching to run away from him.

He was hopeful, however, that after the wedding once they'd returned home she would be calm enough that they could discuss this rationally. That perhaps she would actually let him explain his side of the story. What could he possibly say to make this better? Even though he hadn't exactly lied, he definitely hadn't been honest with her either.

The music started. Lucy Weasley came up the aisle with James, both of them smiling and looking straight ahead. Albus really did look dashing. His black hair managed to not be quite as messy as normal, although it would never lie flat.

Albus was nervous. He didn't know if he was ready for marriage. He didn't know if he could really make this work. Would Norah be happy with him? Would he be happy with her, forever? They'd only been dating for about two months. Who really knew each other after only two months? This was insane. Part of him wanted to yell, 'forget this!' and run.

But then she appeared. At the end of the aisle, in a beautiful white gown, and Albus had never seen anything more perfect in his entire life. As she walked toward him, he wasn't nervous anymore. He was confident. Eager, even, for this to happen. Out of nowhere, for the first time since the institution of this law, he was looking forward to this event.

They smiled at each other sweetly and the flash from the cameras intensified as the press recognized an intimate moment being shared by the two of them. Nobody was escorting Norah down the aisle. Albus knew that Scorpius had offered but Norah didn't want an escort. Tradition dictated that the male in the family give away the bride, but Norah wanted to do it herself.

His bright green eyes were still locked on her soft brown ones when suddenly the object of his affection was blocked from his view when someone abruptly Apparated in the middle of the aisle, between Albus and Norah. Kingsley Shacklebolt stood confidently before everyone in attendance. "Stop!" he yelled.

Silence reigned. The music stopped and nobody dared even whisper. Why had the Minister of Magic interrupted the wedding? "After many sleepless nights at the Ministry with the Marriage Law Committee, reading the owls of wizards and witches throughout the country, we have reached a decision.

"In order to maintain the peace and solve the problems that the law has caused quickly and efficiently, the marriage law has been _abolished_," his deep voice resounded through the large tent as people gaped at him in shock. "The Ministry acknowledges that the law, while having good intentions, was not well-received by the public. Any weddings from now on will not be enforced by the Ministry. Any couples who are able to secure a divorce, meaning their bonds are weak, have three days to file for a divorce with the Ministry. Let me repeat, if your marriage was a result of the law and you want out of it, you have _three days_ to file for divorce, after that no more divorces will be allowed except in extreme circumstances. The Ministry office opens tomorrow morning at 7 o'clock for those of you who want to choose this path. Albus, Norah, I speak now directly to the both of you. I came straight here from the Ministry to get here before you made your vows and bonds. You don't have to do this. You are no longer being forced to marry. I'm sorry I can't stay longer, but I have a lot of paper work to finish. Harry," he turned to Harry Potter, shook his hand, and Disapparated.

Stunned silence met Albus's ears. The guests were all in shock. Hell, _he _was in shock, but when he lifted his eyes and saw the look of utter despair on Norah's face, he remembered why they were here. What was the point of calling off the wedding now? They were in love. They wanted to be together. They'd made all of the plans and all of the guests were assembled.

He knew that Norah assumed the wedding was off. But he didn't want it to be. Before he could say this, however, people began talking amongst themselves, and a few of them stood up. They thought the wedding wasn't going to happen either, apparently.

Panicking, Albus glanced around and saw James studying his face. James, knowing his brother very well, waved his hand and mumbled a quiet, "_Sonorous_," he had used wandless magic to amplify Albus's voice. Al shot him a grateful smile then yelled, "Oi! You lot! Hold on!"

Relief washed over him as he regained control of the crowd. "Before anyone leaves, there's something I want to say. I was going to marry Norah Zabini today because the Ministry told me I had to. But now that I don't have to, I still want to. I don't know how she feels, but if she's still willing, then Norah, love, will you marry me?"

"Yes," her usually quiet voice was loud and confident now. "I will," a breathtaking smile appeared on her face as the tears that had been about to spill over twinkled in her eyes.

"That's settled then. Sit back down, everyone!" he turned to the band, "Play on!"

….

Scorpius couldn't believe this. Rose had fucking left the reception before it even started! As soon as Albus and Norah had said their 'I do's' Rose hugged them and disappeared.

"Don't you leave, too," Norah whispered as Scorpius subtly attempted to move toward the house where he could use the Floo. Disapparition might cause unwanted attention as it usually made a loud noise.

He sighed and rolled his eyes at his cousin, "Did Al tell you about our fight?"

"Just a little bit," she winced. "Don't worry, you two can talk it out tonight. She's probably busy breaking all of the possessions in your bedroom right now. Let her calm down."

"I suppose," he nervously ran a hand through his hair. "I'll stay for a little bit longer, but then I have to go home. Rose and I need to talk about this."

"Alright. Thanks, Scor, love you," she hugged him and kissed his cheek, leaving just a light red imprint of her lips.

"Scorpius!" After Norah had returned to Albus's side, someone else was calling his name. Scorpius turned and balked as Nathan Zabini strode toward him. "Good to see you, mate," they shook hands, although Scorpius did this somewhat grudgingly.

"Nathan, I thought you weren't being released until your wedding?"

"My wedding was supposed to be tomorrow, but it looks like there won't be one now!" he didn't appear to be at all bothered by this. "The cells in Azkaban are enchanted to drain you of your magical power, which weakens you, and the Ministry didn't want me fainting at the altar, so they let me out today for my sister's wedding. She really looked beautiful."

Scorpius blinked at him and asked, "Who are you and what have you done with Nathan Zabini?"

Nathan actually chuckled, sipped at the glass of champagne in his hand, and replied, "I want to be a better guy, Scorp. I want to learn how to look past the prejudices my family taught me. Look at Norah," he motioned toward her with his glass. "She's genuinely happy. I've never seen her look that happy. Hell, I've never been that happy myself. Maybe I could learn something from her example, you know?"

"I'm happy for you, Nathan. It looks like maybe your time in Azkaban really did some good for you."

He shrugged. "I wanted to change before Azkaban, but…well…anyway, where's your wife? I haven't seen Rose around."

"She, ah, wasn't feeling well and went home. I told her to take a Pepper-Up Potion and I would be there shortly," as he said this he glanced at his pocket watch to check the time.

"Well you'd better go take care of your bird," Nathan playfully punched his shoulder and meandered off to mingle with other people.

Scorpius, for the first time in his life, took Nathan's advice and made his way into the Burrow. Without speaking to anyone else, he went home. To his dismay, Rose wasn't there. She was nowhere in the house. He asked all three house elves to search, performed several _Homenum Revelio_'s but was finally forced to admit that the mansion was empty aside from himself and the three house elves.

….

Rose went to the only place she wanted to be; home. Hermione, Ron, and Hugo were still at the reception and probably would be for a long time, leaving Rose alone with her thoughts. There was so much to think about!

Kingsley's announcement couldn't have come at a better time. Right when she would have given just about anything to be free of Scorpius Malfoy, she'd been offered the chance.

Because she really did have the chance. Some people weren't able to get out of their marriage bonds because when they said them, they meant them. But Rose hadn't. Not really. She knew that the bonds she'd made were weak enough to be broken. Even if Scorpius's were confident and strong, which she now doubted, her weak ones would be enough to allow them a divorce.

When she thought about this course of action, she became more convinced that it was the right one. She would never have to be worried about him lying to her again or keeping secrets from her. She would never to have to worry that he was only with her because she was a trophy wife.

Finally! She could have the one thing she'd wanted for the past few months; to be able to go about this the right way. Meet a bloke, date, fall in love, then get married. Maybe Albus and Norah would let her live with them for a while. Yes, thinking of divorcing Scorpius Malfoy was like taking a breath of fresh air.

Except when she remembered that she loved him. Then the idea made her feel sick.

….

After several hours, Scorpius came to the conclusion that Rose was not going to come home that night. Not knowing what else to do, he began searching for her. Where would she go? Her old flat? Yes, he would check there first.

When he arrived he was filled with momentary success as he noted that the lights were on in the flat and there was definitely someone in the kitchen. But then Norah came around the corner, still in her wedding dress, and Scorpius asked, "Is Rose here?"

"No," Norah frowned as Al appeared behind her with a cup of tea in hand. "Did she storm out on you?"

"She wasn't there! I haven't seen her since the wedding!" he was panicking and he knew it but he didn't care. "Where would she have gone?"

"I don't know," Albus answered truthfully. If he had been in Scorpius's shoes, this was the first place he would have checked as well.

"How can I talk to her if she's not there for me to talk to? How can I explain…"

"Yes, let's talk about that, shall we?" Albus said venomously as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Why the hell _did_ you choose Rose, Malfoy? Don't lie to me, I know she must have been your first choice because Rose was probably a lot of bloke's first choice so the Ministry would have definitely put her with someone who put her as number one."

"It's…complicated. Instead of justifying my actions to you, I need to be explaining them to my wife. Now are you two going to help me find her or not?"

"Not," answered Norah as she began pulling pins from her hair and extracting her veil from the tangled mess of her brown locks. "I think that, knowing Rose, if you try to talk to her, she'll interrupt you, ignore you, and twist what you say right now. She's too mad to listen to you properly."

"Then what the hell am I supposed to do?" Scorpius raged.

"Do what I did when I told Albus. Write her a letter. We might not be able to find her, but your owl will. Explain everything, write it all out, word it as best as you can which I know can be a challenge for you, and then it's up to Rose what she does with the information."

"That's actually a really good idea. That way Rose won't feel pressured to make an immediate decision. She can read what you said, several times if she wants, think about it, then reply," Albus agreed.

"I guess that is my best option at this point, isn't it?" he grumbled. "Alright, I'll give it a shot. Do you have parchment and quills around here somewhere?"

Albus and Norah exchanged an awkward glance before Al said, "Er, Scorpius, this is kind of our wedding night and we planned on spending it alone together in our flat…"

"Oh! Right! Sorry," Scorpius moved to the fireplace and asked, "Where are you two going for your honeymoon anyway?"

"Some tropical island," said Al with a shrug, "Mum won't tell me which one. It's her wedding gift to us. We leave first thing in the morning."

"Well I hope you two have a great time! Wish me luck!"

"Good luck!"

….

_My Rose,_

_There are so many things that I want to say to you but the one I need to say first is that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you the truth right from the start. I'm sorry that I kept something from you that deem as so important. And I'm sorry that you had to find out from your cousins instead of your husband. _

_You should also know that I do love you. Never doubt that, Rose. Never doubt that you are the most important person in my life and I care for you more than I ever thought I could care for anyone. Since becoming engaged to you, my life has changed completely and I've never been happier. _

_You asked me earlier why I chose you but you didn't give me enough time to answer your question properly. You assume that I chose you for selfish reasons but that couldn't be further from the truth. _

_I spent my years at Hogwarts rooming with five other guys. Nathan, Zach, Rider, Travis, and Liam. Liam was, really, my only friend. It must be obvious to you that I don't really have a lot of friends and I'm not on good terms with Nathan at all. Liam and I were there, in the dorm that night, when the others were discussing their options._

_Nathan and Zach both wanted you and put you down as their first choice. Travis and Rider were definitely considering you. Neither Liam nor I said anything on the topic at all. Liam is a half-blood so he couldn't choose who he wanted to be with. My list was still blank; I didn't fancy anyone and I barely knew any half-bloods or muggleborns at all. _

_Then the conversation got even worse. Nathan talked about what a 'firecracker' he thought you would be in bed. Travis hinted that Nathan would have to force you into sex. I tried not to listen because it was pissing me off to hear them talk about any girl that way, let alone you. I knew you, sort of, from the few Prefects things we've worked on together. I knew that you were a vulnerable and sweet witch. Wizards like Zabini, Goyle, Selwyn, and Nott would have broken you, Rose. It hurt me to think of you with any of them. _

_I kept picturing your big blue eyes turning dull and your beautiful pale skin spotted with bruises from abuse. I didn't choose you for me, I chose you for you. I did it to keep you safe. I did it so that the bloke you married wouldn't utterly destroy you. However, my motives were not entirely selfless. From what I did know of you at the time, I liked you well enough. I truly thought that we could be happy together if we tried to be. _

_We were allowed to write down three names; our first, second, and third choices of witches we wanted to marry. I put your name down for all three options. Then, the following morning, after everyone turned in their parchments to McGonagall, I went to her office. We spoke and I told her of my intentions. I implored her to do whatever she could to keep you away from my dorm mates. She was sympathetic, believed my motives were pure, and spoke directly to Kingsley Shacklebolt about it. _

_I honestly didn't know if we would fall in love or not but I am so glad I did. Even if you decide that you can never love me for what I've done; even if you never would have loved me anyways, know that I don't regret my decision. Know that you are the best thing that has ever happened to me and I will always love you. _

_Yours, _

_Scorpius_

He watched as his owl flew off with the letter clamped in his beak. Most of his night had been spent composing the letter. It wasn't the most eloquent thing in the world; Scorpius never had been very good with words. But still, it was better than nothing.

The first golden rays of the morning sun were peaking up over the horizon and Scorpius exhaled shakily. It was morning. The night was over. Godric, it was almost seven o'clock in the morning! The Ministry would open soon for people filing for divorce.

Scorpius's long pale fingers clenched his windowsill as he closed his eyes and prayed that his letter reached her before she went to the Ministry. And that, by some miracle, she would come back to him.

…

**A/N: I was going to make this chapter longer but changed some things around so one scene that was SUPPOSED to be in this chapter will now be in the next one. I hope you all enjoyed this one! **


	25. Power of Love

**A/N: Let me start off by saying that I have this terrible problem with **_**intending **_**to address certain reviews but then forgetting to actually do so in my author's notes. NORMALLY I write my author's note when the chapter is finished, but I get so excited to post the chapter that I keep the author's note shorter than I should and don't say all that I need to say. **

**Taylor reviewed as a guest and expressed interest in talking about working on sequels however I do not know your penname so I am unable to private message you. You are welcome to send me a private message and we can discuss these ideas further.**

**Another guest asked about my little American-ism slips…hehe. Oops. I try really hard to write my Harry Potter fanfic stories with British English (I even had to google what the British equivalent of a "fanny pack" is because I knew that isn't what they are called in the UK and it translated to "bum bag"). Yes, I very much appreciate when reviewers give me pointers or correct things when I accidentally use American English. Anyone who would like to point out these things is welcome to do so! It definitely helps to improve my writing. **

**Umm…I think that covers what I wanted to say in this author's note for the most part. About this chapter…well…ah….just don't hate me, okay? I love you guys!**

**MofDA**

**Disclaimer: Same as usual**

**WARNING: Let's see…language, sexual content, and violence in this chapter.**

…**.**

Hugo Weasley left the wedding reception kind of early. His intentions were to go home, grab a change of clothes, and spend the night with Heather in celebration. He hardly dared to believe this was actually happening. She and Fred would probably be the first two in line the following morning requesting a divorce.

But as he threw his clothes into a bag, he heard muffled sobs coming from the room next to his. Who was in Rose's old bedroom? With his wand drawn, he inched into the room to find Rose, curled under the blankets, sobbing brokenly. "Rose," Hugo tucked his wand away and rushed to her.

Comforting his older sister was where Hugo had learned to comfort girls in general, which came in handy in his relationships. Now he wrapped his arms around her and drew her onto his lap. As she cried, clutching his shirt tightly with both of her fists, he rocked her back and forth and cooed soothingly to her.

"Tell me what's wrong," he coaxed. Rose shook her head back and forth violently. "Rosie, it's me, Hugo. You can tell me anything. Don't shut me out. Tell me why you're so upset."

"It's Scorpius."

"Oh Godric…don't tell me he wants a divorce?" Hugo's voice squeaked on the last word.

"No, he doesn't," she replied calmly, with only one hiccup interrupting her sentence. "But I might."

"What? Why? I thought you two were really hitting it off recently!"

"We were until I found out that he has purposefully been hiding something from me," Rose was torn between anger and pain and kept jumping immediately from one emotion to the other.

"What did he keep from you?"

"The fact that he chose me! Hugo, he could have had any muggleborn or half-blood girl he wanted and yet he chose me!"

Hugo's eyebrows drew together in confusion. "Shouldn't you be happy about this? If I were you I would be flattered."

"Why did he pick me, Hu?" Rose asked barely above a whisper.

"Maybe because he fancied you?"

"No, he didn't. We barely even knew each other then. Yet I was his first choice. It's suspicious, isn't it? Especially after…after Zabini told me that all of the Slytherin boys were talking about me." She winced after admitting this.

"What?" Hugo snarled. "What were they saying?"

"Zabini said that they all wanted me. He said it was because I was fit and famous."

"And now you think that's why Malfoy chose you?"

"Of course it is! Why else would he have chosen me?"

"I don't know, Rose, maybe because he thought you were pretty and smart and that you would be good for him," Hugo didn't exactly like this situation, but he wasn't going to jump to conclusions the way his sister had. "I'm just saying that Malfoy and Zabini are two separate people. It's possible that they had different motives for wanting you."

"Even if Scorpius did think I was pretty and smart, it still doesn't make any sense. Not if he could have had anyone. There are other smart and pretty girls. Probably others that he was closer to or that would have been happier to be paired with him than I was at first. Why me?"

"Did you ask him?"

"No…"

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't have to. Let's just say that you're right. For argument's sake, let's say that Scorpius simply thought that I was the best option for noble reasons, which I highly doubt. Why would he have kept that from me? Norah told you. Leila told James. _Why didn't he tell me_? If he had nothing to hide then why would he try to hide it?"

Hugo didn't know what to say in reply to that because, surprisingly, his older sister had a valid point. If Scorpius was unashamed of his choice and his motives, why wouldn't he have been honest with her from the start? "Perhaps you should talk to him."

"Why? So he can lie to me and manipulate me some more?"

"Alright, if you truly believe what you're saying, then why did you say that you _might_ divorce him? Because the Rose I know would already be at the Ministry, camped out all night, waiting for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement to open."

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do know, now tell me why you haven't decided whether or not to get a divorce?"

So quietly he almost missed it, Rose averted her eyes and said, "Because I love the bastard."

"I'm sorry, what was that?" Hugo had heard her but didn't believe his own ears.

"I said, 'BECAUSE I LOVE THE BASTARD'!" she shouted. Hugo leaned back, eyes wide and her vehemence.

"When did that happen?"

"When James and Al told me about purebloods getting to request who they wanted to marry. I was so hurt, Hugo. You've no idea. I felt like he broke my heart. That was when I realized…how could he break my heart unless he had it in his hands? Somewhere in the past month, I fell in love with him."

"Are you sure it's not just infatuation or lust? Maybe that's the sex talking…"

Rose chuckled. "No, it's not. I love the way he listens when I talk and takes my opinion seriously. I love the way he reads out loud to me in bed at night. I love the way he challenges the way I think and can have intellectual discussions with me in the way that most blokes can't. I love the way he always knows how to make me laugh and smile…"

"So what you're saying is that he's never, in any way, made you think that he _doesn't _care about you? Whether his reasons were selfish ones or not, it sounds like eventually fell for you. Trust me, he wouldn't do any of those things if he was only in this for sex and power."

Hugo's use of the word 'power' triggered something in her memory. Scorpius had told her that his grandfather was the one who suggested using her to further his own career and social standing. As a result, Scorpius didn't trust himself to be in a position of power and ended up changing his career choice. If it had been his grandfather who planted the notion in his mind, then he truly hadn't agreed with what Zabini was saying about her in their dormitory.

"Rose? You have that far-away look…"

"I'm just thinking. Merlin, I'm so tired," she relaxed in his grip and Hugo pressed his cheek to the top of her head.

"Do you want to sleep?"

"I think I should. I don't know what to think, Hugo. I'm so afraid of making the wrong decision."

"You could always test your marriage bonds."

"What?"

"You don't have to necessarily file for divorce, just go and have them test the strength of your marriage bonds. If they're strong on his part, then he meant them." Hugo shrugged. "It's the only way you can know for sure."

"I'll consider it. You go on and meet up with Heather. She's probably waiting for you."

"How did you know?"

Rose motioned to the pair of boxers that Hugo had forgotten he was still holding tightly in his fist. "I'm assuming you only came home to grab a change of clothes."

"See, Sis? You're smart. You'll figure this thing out. Just…promise me you won't do anything rash."

"Okay, Hu, I promise. Love you, little brother."

"Love you, too." Hugo pulled the covers back. Rose climbed in and was asleep before Hugo closed her bedroom door behind him.

….

The following morning she found herself strangely groggy upon waking. Probably because she hadn't slept very well at all and had stayed up so late the night before. Then why was she awake? It was only half past seven! With a groan she rolled over and pulled the pillow over her head.

_Tap tap tap_. Ah. There it was. Apparently it was that blasted owl's fault! Grumbling all the while, she disentangled herself from the bedding and stumbled over to her window. She felt sick to her stomach when she recognized the owl as Scorpius's.

She had half a mind to not accept the owl. But she couldn't bear the thought of sending it away without even reading it. What if it was important? With the sort of dreaded determination one might have on the way to his own execution, she let the owl in and took the letter from him.

Her eyes scanned the letter twice before really letting his words sink in and reading them one at a time to get the full meaning. By the end of the letter, Rose could hardly think past the expanding emotions in her chest.

Her Scorpius. Her lovely, amazing, wonderful husband had been trying to _protect _her? What a Gryffindor type of thing to do! That was when her brain and her heart decided to make a compromise.

Hugo had said that the only way to know for sure whether Scorpius was being genuine or not was to test his marriage bonds. But Rose knew now that she didn't have to. She knew the truth already. Marriage was about trust and love and mutual respect. If she wanted his trust and respect and love, then she would give the same things to him.

If she wanted Scorpius, all of him, heart, mind, body, and soul, then she would give herself to him equally in return. It was only fair.

…

Scorpius didn't know what to do. He hadn't heard from Rose yet and it was almost nine in the morning. Had his owl missed her? Had he been too late? Worse; had she read the letter, decided it was a lie, and went to the Ministry anyway? Merlin, he couldn't take this. He was going to have some sort of break down.

"Stop pacing," Draco sipped at his tea and watched his son warily as Astoria and Draco sat in the dining room. Scorpius had originally planned on joining them for breakfast, but found that he couldn't eat a thing.

"She'll come around," said Astoria gently. "I know she cares for you, Scorpius. Your father and I have been living in this house with the two of you for the past month. We can be perceptive when we want to be."

"Yeah, well, you've been seeing the good side of Rose," he remembered Albus Potter's words about Rose being the best and the worst. "She has a stubborn side that-"

"Let me guess," mused Draco with obvious amusement. "She blows up and gets mad before reasoning through things which normally results in her doing or saying something extreme? Then, later, she has time to think it over but sometimes it's too late and her rash reaction comes around to bite her in the arse?"

"Er – yes."

"Hermione did say she was just like her father," Draco unrolled _The Daily Prophet_ lazily.

"This isn't funny, Dad," groaned Scorpius as he covered his face with his hands. "My wife might be reversing our bonds right now!"

"She can't have the bonds reversed without you there," Astoria corrected.

"Fine! You know what I mean! She could be asking the Ministry to perform the un-bonding ceremony!"

"Calm down, dear, have a croissant."

"I don't want a bloody croissant!"

"Rin!"

"Yes, Master Draco?" Rin immediately popped into the room at the summons of Draco Malfoy.

"Astoria and I are going out for the rest of the day as our son is acting like an immature angsty teenager. Be sure he eats _something_, alright?"

"Yes, Master," Rin squeaked. Draco quirked an eyebrow at his son, daring him to argue with these orders. He was basically assigning Scorpius a babysitter in the form of his house elf.

Scorpius scowled but said nothing as his parents left. Angrily, he stomped his way up to his bedroom. "…treating me like a damn child…don't they understand…fucking hell, why haven't I heard from her yet? Even a jovial 'sod off!' would be better than nothing!"

As he approached his bedroom door he heard sounds. He paused. Was someone else here? Surely no one could have entered the house without him knowing about it. Unless his parents had come back for something?

The sounds were coming from down the hall, in Rose's room. The music room. The room where they spent most of their evenings together watching muggle movies and discussing books. It had become more than just her room; it was _their _room.

Piano music. His heart leapt in his chest. He recognized the way the melody was played. It was being performed in a way that only she could manage. Pachelbel's Canon in D. It had been a while since he'd heard her fingers stroking those particular notes in that particular order. She hadn't played that song since the day he'd proposed.

Hoping desperately that he wasn't just dreaming, he let his feet carry him to the room. He hesitated for only a second before reaching for the doorknob. When he pushed the door open, the beauty of the music almost overwhelmed him, but what was even more shocking was the girl seated at the piano.

It was Rose, of course, with her back to him, her long curly hair flowing down her back in sweet cascades of crimson and…what was she wearing? He inched closer to discover that she was wearing the most risqué piece of lingerie he'd ever seen her in. It was a black lacey number that had thin straps and the cups didn't even cover her breasts as they dipped so low they barely concealed her nipples from his hungry gaze.

The one-piece lingerie clung to her curves deliciously and made her shapely arse really stand out, even though she was still seated! Scorpius swallowed hard. Her lace-clad center was only _just _out of his view as the frilly bottom of her outfit barely reached her sex.

His eyes followed her creamy thighs down to her knees, her silky calves, and – oh Godric! Those black stilettos on her feet made him even harder, the bulge in his trousers almost painful. Unsure as to whether or not he wanted to wait for her to finish the song before ravishing her, he licked his lips unconsciously while her blood red nails danced on the keys.

As the last note died away into silence, Scorpius put his large hands on her shoulders and said, "I'm sorry."

"No," Rose stood and turned to face him. "I'm sorry. I did warn you that when we fought I would run off."

"You did," he agreed as he used his leg to push the piano bench aside so he could press himself against her. "But you also promised that you'd always come back."

"And I did." Their lips met in a mixture of passion, desire, and longing. This is what they needed. And sweet Circe, if this was her way of apologizing then he should make her feel guilty more often!

His hands cupped her bottom and lifted her onto the piano keys. They rang out in a clanging of out-of-tune noise as he dropped her onto them and pressed his erection into her center. Her legs wrapped around his waist and he could feel the sinful prick of her heels on the backs of his thighs.

A groan escaped him as she stroked him through his trousers before impatiently tugging them open and dropping to her knees on the floor before him. Those blood red lips wrapped around his cock and he barely had time to register the amazing sizzle of pleasure before he was fully encased by her, the mouth he loved to kiss was tasting him for the first time and – oh _fuck_ – he was going to bust in mere seconds if she kept sucking like that.

When she brought a hand up to cup his balls and moaned around him, his knees almost gave out. Swiftly he bent to grip her upper arms and pulled her up, slamming her back down on the piano keys. Knowing what he wanted, Rose spread her thighs wide, giving him the best view he'd ever had in his life.

His witch, opening herself to him, panting breathily, wearing the sexiest damn thing he could have imagined, begging him to fuck her. After enjoying the view for a moment, he gave in to what they both craved so desperately and pushed himself into her tight opening.

_Fucking hell_ she was tight, hot, and slick around him as he buried himself inside her. His head dropped down to the crook of her neck, panting against her pulse point while his hands moved to pull the flimsy cups down so he could roll her nipples between his fingers as he thrust roughly into her.

There wasn't exactly anything sweet about this. It was desperate, wild, almost animalistic. The only noises filling the room were their moans, panting, flesh slapping against flesh, and the banging of piano keys.

As he drove himself into her silky center again and again and again, Rose found herself staring into his beautiful light blue eyes. She wanted so badly to tell him that she loved him. The words were ringing through her head so loudly that she wouldn't be surprised if he could hear them. _I love you, I love you, oh gods, Scorpius, I love you!_

But she didn't want to say it the first time in the midst of passion. Knowing Scorpius, he wouldn't believe her because she said it while he was shagging her, and she didn't want to have to convince him of the truth later. Instead, she bit down onto his neck and kept herself from saying those three little words.

His thrusts were wild now and so quick she could barely keep up with him and eventually she gave up trying and instead just let herself get lost in the pleasure of it, letting out sharp cries every time his hips met hers in unrelenting power.

"Scorpius, please, I need to feel you…to feel you inside me," she managed to gasp.

"I am," he grunted in response.

Rose shook her head, kissed his lips chastely and clarified, "I need to feel you finish inside of me. I need to feel your hot essence filling me up and – _Oh!_" at her words, he found his release and, as requested, spilled himself deeply inside of her, reveling at the fact that this is what sparked her own orgasm. Her body trembled in his arms and her nails bit into his forearms as she continued to grind herself against him, lost in her pleasure.

As they both came down from their highs, Scorpius continued to pepper her face with sweet kisses. Rose's deep blue eyes, still slightly glazed over, met his, and she opened her mouth. _Now_ was the moment. She would finally tell him the words he'd been longing to hear for so long… "Scorpius, I-"

"Master?" Rin the house elf popped into the room. Rose gave a startled squeal and scrambled to cover herself as best as she could with the flimsy lace she was wearing. Scorpius pursed his lips but kept his back to the elf as he tucked himself into his trousers, zipped them, and turned to face her.

"What is it, Rin?"

"Rin is sorry to bother you, Master and Mistress, but Master Zabini just Flooed into the sitting room. You needs to hurry, Master Scorpius, he seems angry."

"Ah, bloody hell," Scorpius ran a hand through his hair. "I'll go talk to him."

"I'm coming with you!" Rose stood on shaky legs (shagging Scorpius always left her feeling so sated and weak!)

"Rin, fetch her a robe, will you?" With two sharp cracks, Rin had disappeared and reappeared almost instantaneously with a robe. Rose slipped it on and followed Scorpius down to the sitting room.

Nathan looked crazed when they saw him. He was pacing quickly, wringing his hands together, and he was scowling at the carpet beneath his feet as he tread across it. "Nathan," Scorpius said in confusion. "What brings you here?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Malfoy! I went to talk to Norah this morning and she's not at her flat! She's not at Albus's flat either! Where are they?"

"On their honeymoon," said Scorpius with a frown. "Did you need her for something? Maybe I can help-"

"What about Dominique? I went to her flat today, too, and she wasn't there either!"

"What do you want with Dominique?" asked Scorpius. Rose was still on the steps that led down to the sitting room, not coming fully into the room as the look on Nathan's face made her just slightly apprehensive.

"We were supposed to get married today and that bint thinks she can just walk out on me? I'm not a fucking doormat! I don't care if the Ministry abolished the marriage law or not! We were still engaged and I think that I at least deserve the chance to talk to her!"

Scorpius said calmly, "You can't force Dominique to have affection for you, Nathan. Woo her, be patient and gentle. She's a woman, for Merlin's sake, not a dog!"

Something was wrong with this picture and both Rose and Scorpius knew it. Rose could just sense it, but for Scorpius it was more than that. Just the night before Nathan had been almost happy at the thought of not getting married, but now he wanted to force Dominique into it? What the hell?

Rose was watching the scene before her unfold with trepidation. Nathan was clearly beyond reason. He had his wand out, pointed at Scorpius, but they were a good distance away from each other. She was standing at the bottom of the staircase, off to the side of the arguing duo, safely out of the way.

"Just tell me where I can find her," Nathan said through gritted teeth.

"I honestly don't know, but even if I did I wouldn't tell you," Scorpius sighed and shook his head. "You can't talk to her like this, mate, are you drunk? Listen, there are plenty of spare rooms here, take a nap, sleep it off, and maybe when you wake up you can talk to her-"

"I'M NOT DRUNK! I just want to – to talk to _someone_! Where did Norah and Albus go on their honeymoon?"

Scorpius didn't answer his question but asked instead, "What do you need to talk to her about?"

"About coming back home you ignorant tosser! She can't just marry that Potter git and not even invite our parents to the wedding. What kind of slag does that? Ungrateful bitch!"

"She didn't want them there so they weren't invited. End of."

"No, that's not the end. She wouldn't even speak to me last night. I'm her fucking brother."

"You don't always act like it," Scorpius stated bluntly.

"Tell me where the fuck they are, Malfoy of I'll fucking kill you!" Nathan roared. Rose debated on going upstairs to get her own wand, or Scorpius's, as they'd both foolishly left them in the music room in their haste to reach Nathan, but she couldn't tear her eyes off of what was happening.

"No," Scorpius replied steadily.

"Fuck you, Malfoy! She's going to be my wife and I'll treat her however I damn well please."

"Then you'll end up in Azkaban. Again." Scorpius said in exasperation.

"This is your last chance," snarled Nathan between gritted teeth. "Tell me where Norah and Dominique are or you'll regret it."

Scorpius looked entirely unconcerned. "No." He repeated.

Rose knew what was going to happen before Scorpius did. She saw Nathan's eyes change, like a wild animal just before it attacked. She was already running when the word left Nathan's lips. _"Sectumsempra!"_

With nothing else for her to do, Rose spun sideways and took the curse against her back, her front facing Scorpius's shocked expression. The curse hit her with such force that it pushed her forward, into Scorpius's arms. He caught her easily.

The expression on her face was full of surprise but not pain. Her pupils were dilated and her plump red lips were forming a soft O. "Rose," her name escaped him in a raspy voice as she sagged in his grip.

Behind her, Nathan was sweeping out of the mansion like a bat out of hell, but Scorpius didn't even care. That was when he noticed the slick wetness against his fingers. He pulled her hard against him and looked down at her back. Red coated her body. Blood was spilling out of the open wounds in her back, draining her of life. His entire body began to tremble. _This wasn't happening. This wasn't fucking happening._

He looked at her face again and she fucking _smiled_ at him. "…I love you," she told him and with the smile still on her lips, her eyes rolled back in her head.

"No!" He screamed. "No!" Kicking into gear, he spun on the spot and took them directly to St. Mungo's. "Help!" he screamed. "Somebody help me!"

Healers rushed to his aide immediately but panic raged inside of him. Had his hesitation, even though it only lasted a moment, cost her life? Was she already gone? She'd lost so much blood. Even now it coated his arms thickly. How could she possibly survive this?

…

**A/N: Apparently I am incapable of writing a Scorpius/Rose story in which nobody gets hurt or dies. I know what's going to happen in the next chapter but have not written it yet. This chapter was short because it was SUPPOSED to be combined with the previous chapter but I decided to separate them so there wasn't too much information/drama at once. **

**Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!**


	26. Waiting

**A/N: First off, apologies all! It's been a long time since I updated and I'm sorry for that. Normally this is where I would give the usual explanations; I am working full time, I also go to school full time, family stuff, etc. But really, the main reason was because this story is almost over and whenever I get close to finishing a story I have a really hard time updating because I don't want to. However that is the sad truth of it. **

**Thank you all for the amazing reviews and the many follows and favorites! I am thinking just another chapter or two before this story comes to an end. Let me know what you think!**

**Anyway, on with the story!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

…**..**

"_I love you_," her last words haunted him now. He'd ached to hear them for so damn long and he finally got his wish. They wouldn't let him in the room as they worked on her. Blood replenishing potions had been given to her but there was no guarantee…she'd lost so much blood…the loss of oxygen to her brain could potentially be damaging even if she survives.

He wouldn't have even thought to owl her family if it hadn't been for the kind receptionist. "Mr. Malfoy," she'd said softly as he paced up and down in the waiting room. "Do you have any family you would like me to contact?"

"Yes," he rasped, "Ron and Hermione Weasley and Draco and Astoria Malfoy."

Now he was waiting. Waiting for the Healers to come in and say that she was dead. Waiting for his parents to show up and mourn with him. Waiting for her parents to come in and blame him for what had happened. Waiting for a miracle. Waiting for _anything_.

"_I love you_," she had said but he knew it before the words left her mouth. He'd seen the look in her eyes as he'd fucked her on the piano. He saw the shape her mouth was taking when she started to tell him after they finished but Rin had interrupted.

He hadn't even had the chance to say it back. But he was confident that she knew it. That was why she came back after all. She loved him and he loved her and everything would be okay. Please, please, please, let her be okay. She had to be!

"Mr. Malfoy," he spun around to see a Healer Assistant coming toward him.

"Yes?" he demanded impatiently.

"The Healer is still with Rose. She's…stable but something is wrong. The curse used on her isn't one that we can identify. We've seen wounds like hers before, during the…The War…but those patients…well, let's just say that we're doing all we can."

Scorpius paled and growled, "What is the problem? Why can't you heal her properly?"

"We…we can't figure out anything to close the wounds. We're giving her Blood Replenishing potions every few minutes but we can't get enough blood in her for her to wake up yet. Which is probably a good thing because I expect she'd be in a lot of pain as the open wounds won't heal over."

"No," Scorpius dropped his head into his hands and let himself fall down into a chair.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Malfoy."

….

Ron and Hermione arrived first. Neither looked very panicked, just confused and perhaps a bit worried. "What's going on?" Hermione snapped at once. "Where's Rose? We just received an owl from St. Mungo's saying that we needed to come here right away."

"They're…they're working on her," Scorpius breathed. "She was hit with a curse. A particularly bad one and they're not…not sure she's going to make it," his voice cracked on the word 'make' and tears started streaking down his face.

"No!" Hermione's cry of denial echoed in the room as she collapsed into her husband's arms. Ron's face was drained of all color and he looked like he was about to be sick.

"What happened?" his voice was rough with emotion but the Auror in him kept him calm and collected more than his wife in this situation.

"We were at home when Nathan showed up. He was demanding that I tell him where Norah was and where Dominique was but I wouldn't. So he shot a curse at me. Only Rose jumped in front of me. I swear, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, I would have done anything to protect her, but she didn't let me. I never expected…" he gulped as realization dawned. "I should have known…I know her so well…Damn it! I know Rose has that fucking Gryffindor complex with playing the hero!"

"Don't blame yourself," Hermione pulled her head away from Ron's chest, her own face red, blotchy, and sprinkled with tears. "It's not your fault. You didn't cast that spell; Nathan did."

Scorpius nodded seemingly in agreement but was inwardly filling with guilt. Hindsight, as they say, is 20/20, and he could see all of his mistakes so clearly now. Why hadn't he anticipated Rose's course of action? It was clear to him now that she reacted exactly as he would have expected her to.

…

The last half hour he'd spent with his wife kept replaying in his head, her last words resounding like funeral drums. Why was it taking this long to hear something else? Was it a good thing or a bad thing that they hadn't received any recent news?

"_I love you_," would those forever be her last words?

…..

Harry and Ginny Potter arrived next, as Hermione and Ron had contacted them. Ginny dissolved into hysterics with Hermione, the two women had their arms wrapped around each other.

"I thought," gasped Ginny as she dabbed at her eyes with the sleeve of her witches robes, "that we were done with tragedy after The War."

"We all did," Harry said stoically and then nodded to Ron and the two of them quietly exited the room, obviously wanting to have a private conversation.

"What do you reckon they're talking about?" asked Ginny. Hermione shrugged, but they could practically hear the gears in her head turning as she thought through the possibilities.

When Ron came back, Harry was not with him. "What was that about?" asked Hermione.

"They caught Zabini. It's up to Harry and Kingsley what happens to the sod. They talked to the Healers and Healer Urquhart said that if a curse of that magnitude had hit Scorpius directly in the chest, as intended, it would have killed him almost instantly because it would have hit several vital organs. Zabini's being charged with 'attempted murder' and if…if Rose doesn't make it, he'll be charged with wizard-slaughter in the second degree. Harry wanted my opinion on what Kingsley suggested as punishment."

"Did you agree with the punishment they set for him?"

"I did."

"And what exactly is that punishment?" Hermione asked shrewdly.

"Dementor's Kiss."

"What?" shrieked the two women. Scorpius remained silently indifferent.

"But that's barbaric!" Hermione began to rant vehemently. "There's only a small handful of Dementors left who work for the Ministry and the Kiss hasn't been administered to a criminal since…since…"

"Rodolphus Lestrange," Ron confirmed with a nod, "Five years after the war when we finally captured him in Siberia."

"Ron, I don't know, I just don't think…"

"I know that you've had a bit of a sore spot about the Dementor's Kiss since it was almost performed on Sirius when he was an innocent man, but Hermione, this form of punishment can be used on actual criminals who deserve it. This isn't his first offense, either. He was just released from Azkaban yesterday. Obviously it wasn't much of a punishment for him if he was so eager to go back."

"Yesterday?" Hermione asked critically and Ron immediately noted she was wearing her 'I think I am putting together a mystery' face. "That's awfully quick for his magic to be restored to such magnitude."

"Yes, well, it can happen. Anyway, it will probably take a day or two because Harry and Kingsley and the Healer need to get the paperwork together but then-"

"What?" Ginny cut him off, "I thought they were just going to perform the Kiss if Rose…if she…"

"No," Ron's voice was cold again. "The Kiss is being performed regardless of how well Rose recovers because damn it, she _will _recover."

…

They had Rose hooked up to a magically-run machine that was keeping a constant flow of potions going into her system, keeping her alive, but the Healer had to take a break from working on her. She was lying face down on a hospital bed, with her face turned so she could breathe.

Her back was covered in bandages and the blanket was pulled over her legs and bum up to her lower spine, the rest of her was bare aside from the bandages wrapped around her upper body. Blood kept soaking through it before their eyes and a nearby Healer would vanish it only to have more soak through moments later.

Scorpius couldn't help but agree with Mr. Weasley as he watched his wife's blood bleed out of her at an insane pace. Nathan Zabini _did_ deserve to suffer the Dementor's Kiss for this evil he'd rendered on Rose. He sat in a chair by her head, stroking her hair, whispering softly to her.

Rin brought him a book and he began reading it to her aloud, just like he would have done if they had been at home instead of at the hospital. Even though she couldn't hear him, it was calming for him to do this for her. With her. The words flowed from his tongue like honey and he found that he couldn't cry when he was reading to her, because it made him truly believe that she was okay. He could almost convince himself that she was just sleeping. Almost.

….

When Draco and Astoria Malfoy arrived, they made their presence known by barging into the hospital room. "Mr. Malfoy!" squawked a Healer indignantly. "She needs those!" Because he began tearing off her bandages.

"What the hell, Malfoy?" Ron snarled, pulling out his wand, "Get away from my daughter!"

"She's my daughter too now, Weasley, and if you want her to live then let me Heal her!" Draco pulled the bandages from her body and ran his fingers over the deep gashes as they coated his fingers with blood. "Just as I thought," he mumbled. He held his wand aloft and began to recite an incantation that sounded more like a song. With his eyes half-closed he ran the tip of his wand along her wounds and they were sealing before everyone's eyes.

"Oh my…" Hermione gasped, hope swelling in her as she watched her daughter's skin knit back together. But it wasn't perfect. The skin looked tinged pink and it was obvious that she would carry heavy scarring as a result of this incident.

When Draco finally finished, his brow was sweaty and he looked exhausted. "It takes a lot of effort for that one," he breathed as he stumbled back and sunk into a chair.

"How did you…" a Healer began to ask.

"The spell used on her was _Sectumsempra_. The man who invited both the curse and the counter-curse was my godfather."

"Snape," said Harry with dawning comprehension. Draco gave him a nod. "I should have known," said Harry, feeling both foolish and guilty.

"What took you so long to get here?" Scorpius asked his parents as he watched Rose's face slowly begin regaining color.

"We were still out when the owl dropped off the letter from St. Mungo's at our mansion. We came here as soon as we got the message," Astoria answered, not taking her eyes off of Rose. "Are those…"

"Yes," said Draco shortly. "She'll have those scars forever. But she's alive."

"And that's what counts," said Scorpius firmly as he placed his hand over her cheek, marveling that it was already warmer than it had been minutes before. Healers were now bustling around the room, taking her off of certain potions and re-adjusting the dosages of others.

…

_Al and Norah, _

_I thought I should probably tell you that Rose is in the hospital. Nathan came by our house yesterday and demanded for me to tell him where you were and also where Dominique is. When I refused to tell him anything (even though I really don't know where you are), he fired a curse at me. Rose jumped in front of me and it hit her. _

_I rushed her to St. Mungo's and she almost didn't make it. The Healers were unable to close up her wounds (I don't know how much Dark Magic you're familiar with, but he used _Sectumsempra_ on her. Basically, it leaves deep gashes in your flesh and you quickly bleed to death. The curse is so strong it can even sever limbs). _

_Thankfully, my dad knew the counter-curse and he managed to Heal her, but she still has a lot of scars. She is stable now but hasn't woken yet; the hospital has been giving her a lot of potions for the pain and for dreamless sleeping which I'm sure she needs._

_You don't have to rush home or cut your honeymoon short! I just wanted to keep you updated. But there's something else. And Nor, I'm so sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, but they caught Nathan. He confessed and he's back in Azkaban. They have decided that since his last stint in prison obviously didn't change him that his punishment this time around is to suffer the Dementor's Kiss. _

_I know that you don't particularly care for your brother, and I honestly wouldn't blame you if you didn't want to be there to see it happen, but if you want to be there, it's taking place the day after tomorrow. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about such a severe punishment, but as I watched my wife bleed on the hospital bed, not being able to help her or stop her from dying (as she almost did), I decided it was the right thing. _

_If you need to talk or have any other questions, you can send me an owl or use the Floo. I won't be home much but we have a private room at St. Mungo's and if you Flooed the hospital they could connect you to our room. _

_Hope you two are having a good time and that this news doesn't mar your vacation._

_Love,_

_Scorpius_

….

"…_and this time, when he told her that he loved her, she believed him. The End_," Scorpius glanced up at his sleeping wife. He had seriously just read an entire muggle romance novel to her aloud. It was a brand new one that she'd just bought the day before Al and Norah's wedding. She had gone on and on about how excited she was to read it and how much she adored the author's writing style.

Scorpius, however, had found it quite cliché, but the sexy bits did inspire him with a few ideas he wanted to try, even if they had been awkward to read while Healers bustled around the room. Rose's back had healed enough that they were able to roll her onto her back which was a more comfortable position. Scorpius fretted over her constantly and even now as he set the paperback aside, he ran his hand across her forehead and readjusted the blanket wrapped around her.

"Mr. Malfoy?" he glanced up at the Healer who entered. "Sorry to bother you, but I wanted to talk with you about your wife."

"Is everything okay?"

"Well…er…we think so."

"What does that mean?" snapped Scorpius as he glanced over at the machine filled with potions to make sure they weren't running low as they slowly dripped into Rose's system.

"It's just that we know you're aware, but your wife _should_ have woken up by now. It's quite possible that even though her physical wounds are healed, the loss of oxygen to her brain could have caused damage there. We're concerned that she has slipped into a coma."

"She'll wake up."

"It's not that simple. If we used magic to force her into consciousness, it could permanently damage her mind. However, if we let it heal in it's own time, it might not ever happen."

"What are the chances of her waking up on her own without any damage?"

"There's a fair chance of that, actually. Her vitals are normal and we'll be taking her off of most of those potions today. Although it's not guaranteed. So what would you like us to do? Force her awake magically and risk damaging her already frazzled mind, or leave her alone and she might not ever wake up?"

"We wait for her to wake up on her own."

"But she might not, perhaps we should wait a day or two then reevaluate the situation-"

"She will wake up on her own," repeated Scorpius firmly.

Knowing that Scorpius Malfoy had the final say in what happened to his wife, the Healer nodded obediently and left the room. Scorpius took her hand in his and said softly, "Pushy sods. You're stronger than they realize, baby, just keep fighting and come back to me when you're ready."

….

_Scor, _

_I'll be there for Nathan. I've spoken with the Ministry and I'll have a few minutes to talk with him before the kiss is performed, but I've taken your advice and I'm not letting this mar our honeymoon. _

_Albus and I almost rushed home to be with you and Rose but Albus talked with his Aunt Hermione and she told us that Rose is still unconscious and that we wouldn't be any help. If you need me to come home, please tell me. You've been more of a brother to me than Nathan and your father was always more of a dad to me than Blaise. You're my family, Scor. _

_I love you and as strange as it is for me to say, I love Rose, too. If Albus or I can do anything, please let us know! If I don't hear from you before Nathan's punishment is carried out then I guess I will see you there. _

_Love, _

_Norah_

…

James Potter found out that his favorite female cousin was in the hospital by chance. He was at Quidditch practice when one of his teammates asked how Rose was doing.

"Good, I reckon," James had replied casually as he tossed the Quaffle to O'Brien. "Haven't talked to her in a couple of days."

"Shit, mate! Didn't you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"Rose is in the hospital. I heard from my mum who works with Draco Malfoy…"

"What?" James yelled.

Within five minutes James was at St. Mungo's, his feet caked in mud, dripping sweat, still in his practice jersey, wandering the halls looking for her. "Rose!" he gasped upon seeing her.

That was the day after she'd been admitted to the hospital. He'd been angrier than anyone had ever seen him when he discovered that his parents had purposefully kept him in the dark about this. "But why?" he asked again.

"For several reasons, James," said Harry tiredly. "First, you have a game this weekend and if you want to make England then you need to be at the top of your game. There's also the fact that we wanted to keep this as quiet as possible and you're not exactly the best secret keeper in the world."

"I am with important things!"

Ginny and Harry looked at him and he threw his hands up in exasperation. James had barely left her side since, which meant that he was spending a lot of time with Scorpius Malfoy. To his surprise, the bloke was easy to get along with. By the time evening came, they were friends.

…..

Rose came back to consciousness slowly. She felt groggy and wrong, but at least she was alive, which was surprising. Before opening her eyes she wiggled her fingers and toes, mentally making sure that she was, at least, not missing any important parts.

A low groan reached her ears and with a start she realized it was coming from her as she brought her hands up to touch her head and face. What the hell had Nathan hit her with? It felt like she'd been thrown under the Knight Bus!

"Baby?" She recognized that voice even though her eyes were still closed tightly. She would know that voice anywhere.

"Daddy?" she croaked. Merlin, she sounded hoarse!

"I'm right here, Rosie," she felt his strong warm hand on her forehead and she peeked her eyes open just a slit. The face of Ron Weasley swam in her vision with a mixture of worry and relief in his features.

"What's going on?"

With a half-sob half-laugh Ron bent down to hug her tightly and kiss the top of her head. "You were cursed, sweetheart. But don't worry, you're at Mungo's now and they're taking good care of you."

"Nathan…" Rose tried to sit up but Ron gently edged her back down.

"They caught him, don't worry."

"How?" She looked around and noticed they were the only two people in the room.

"Wasn't exactly hard, was it? Just went to his house and he was there. The Aurors didn't have any trouble according to Harry. The Aurors knew before your mum and I did. Scorpius told the hospital what happened as soon as he brought you here, but was so worried he forgot to owl us for a while."

"What did he hit me with? I feel awful," Rose reached for a glass of water on her bedside table and Ron hurried to grab it for her and tip it up to her lips.

"_Sectumsempra_. Nasty little spell that was used a lot by Death Eaters during the war. But Scorpius saved you."

"No, she saved me," Scorpius stood in the doorway with a cup of tea in his hands. He approached her slowly, cautiously, set his cup down and brushed his fingers over her cheek. "Welcome back, love, you had us worried for a while there."

"Scor," she breathed his name, whipped her hands up to tangle into his shirt and pulled him down to connect their lips. "I love you."

"So you said," he ran the pad of his thumb across her jaw.

"I'll never stop saying it now so you had better get used to it!"

….

After the excitement and chaos after she awoke, Rose was feeling a lot more like herself. Mentally she went through certain checklists, concerned that perhaps something in her mind had been injured beyond repair.

With relief she discovered that as far as she could tell, she was perfectly fine in her mind. That was when everything that happened to her really sunk in. Merlin, she'd almost _died._

After a trembling breath, she looked to Scorpius, who was the only person in the room aside form herself, and he calmly explained the whole story. "When are they performing it?" she asked quietly.

"The Dementor's Kiss? Tomorrow. At noon. Norah wants me to be there, but I don't want to leave you-"

"You should be there, Scorpius. You need to be. When it's finished you can come back immediately. I'll still be here," with an agitated sigh she flopped back onto the pillows. Several Healers had been in and out of the room performing several different tests. They told her she wasn't allowed to leave for at least two more nights. They wanted to be sure she was okay before they sent her home.

"It's for the best, baby. As hard as I know it will be for you, you need to be patient," he chided.

Rose was grumbling and squirming. Merlin this was going to be a long next few days. With a frown she picked up the discarded book and flicked through the pages. "Hmm," she hummed as her brow furrowed in confusion.

"What?"

"I've never read this book, but I know it. I can tell you everything that happens in it. Isn't this the one I just bought?" she held it up for him to see.

Scorpius raised his eyebrows. "Yes, it is. I read it to you while you were unconscious."

"The whole thing?"

"Yes."

"Godric. I must have been able to hear you," she closed her eyes and smiled. "I don't consciously remember you reading it to me, but I must have been listening intently because I especially remember a few of the naughtier parts," she smirked at him.

A flash of heat shot through his body. Since they'd been married this was the longest they had gone without having sex with each other. "Well it's obvious that almost dying didn't do anything to hinder your sexual appetite. That's a relief," he teased.

"How about you come over here right now and let me satisfy this outrageous sexual appetite?" she baited with a flirty wink.

"Absolutely not!" Scorpius looked terrified by the very idea. "You're still healing! We're in a hospital room! Your family could walk in at any moment!"

Rose sat up and scooted to the edge of the bed. "I need to use the loo anyway," she told him as she stood on wobbly legs, trying to hide her disappointment that he had turned her down. She nearly fell over but Scorpius caught her by the elbow. "I've got it," she said between gritted teeth with determination. She hated showing weakness.

With shaky movements she slowly made her way to the lavatory, putting one foot in front of the other purposefully the whole way there. It bothered Scorpius to not help her but he knew she would hate it if he tried. He decided to wait patiently standing beside her bed until she returned. Until - "Oh Godric!" she cried.

Scorpius was in the lavatory the next moment. However nothing appeared to be wrong. Rose was standing facing him, her eyes wide and filled with horror but nothing was amiss that he could see. "What is it?" he asked roughly as he peeked into the lavatory behind her.

"My – my back. Why didn't you tell me?" the awkward hospital gown she wore was open in the back; the Healers said this was best for her scars to breathe. There was a mirror behind Rose and she peeked over her shoulder to glance at the reflection of her back and shuddered violently. "It's awful. Can't they make them go away?"

"No," Scorpius's heart constricted at hearing how small and vulnerable Rose sounded. "Your flesh was cursed open with Dark Magic. We're lucky you survived at all."

"No wonder you didn't want to have sex with me," it was a whisper, barely audible, but it registered in his ears and he instinctively felt his arms go around her, careful not to touch the scars as he was sure they would be sensitive and possibly painful.

"I didn't want to have sex with you because I was worried it would hurt you. The scars don't make any difference to me, Rose, and you should know that. They're beautiful."

"They're horrific! I'll never be able to wear a backless dress again. Perhaps not a strapless one either, one of the scars comes up almost to my shoulder. And this will also seriously limit the number of sexual positions we can engage in to keep them from being in your view –"

Her rambling was cut off with his lips. "Do you want to know what I think of these scars, Mrs. Malfoy?" he growled as he nipped along her jaw. "Lie down on your stomach on that bed and I'll show you."

Hesitant but curious, Rose pulled away from his embrace and obeyed, lying on the hospital bed with her naked back facing the ceiling. With surprise she felt his nimble fingers quickly untying the thin laces that held the hospital gown on her body so he could pull it off of her and she found herself completely naked.

His large warm hands were on her arse, massaging it sensually and she couldn't help the small moan that escaped her. One hand slid down, between her legs, to rub over her clit in slow circles. Rose pressed her hips towards him instinctually and Scorpius stilled her movements, using his free hand to lock her hips in place on the bed.

"Scor, you don't…you don't have to do this. You don't have to prove anything to me," tears filled her eyes as she said this. Surely he couldn't find the sight before him arousing? The grotesque scars zigzagging down her back must have been staring him right in the face.

"I want to," his teeth were on her ear and his rock hard cock was rubbing against her slick folds, teasing her.

Rose whimpered and twisted her fingers into the sheets. She wanted him so badly that she almost forgot about how undesirable she must look to him. Almost. "I can roll over. Or you could sit down and let me straddle you –"

"No," it was a firm command that made her shiver. Scorpius was rarely demanding with her and she found it to be quite the turn on. "I want to take you just like this."

She buried her face into the pillow to smother her cry of pleasure when he entered her, sending pleasure from her core throughout her entire body. "Oh, Scor, you feel so good," she assured him as she wriggled in an attempt to press her bum even more firmly against him.

"So do you, baby. Fuck, so good." His movements were slow, deliberate, and Rose was letting out wordless mewls of pleasure in an attempt to spur him to go faster. He kept up the torturously slow pace until she let out a particularly loud cry when she felt the tip of his tongue tracing along the scars down her back.

They were more sensitive than she'd realized but it didn't hurt. It felt strangely good and she didn't want him to stop. As one of his hands skimmed up her body to cradle her neck and tilt her head, he whispered, "You're so beautiful, Rose. The most gorgeous woman I've ever seen."

She believed him.

…

Rose Malfoy was not an idiot. As a matter of fact, she was quite brilliant, thank you very much. Which was why she wouldn't take 'no' for an answer when she ordered Scorpius to go home with his parents for the night. She couldn't carry out her devious plans with him around, after all.

When they'd finished making love she had noticed the dark circles under his eyes and realized he'd gotten much less rest than her while she'd been hospitalized. Draco and Astoria happily assisted her in getting Scorpius to spend the night in his bed at the Manor.

Scorpius had, of course, argued valiantly with all kinds of excuses; he couldn't sleep well without her, he would be lonely if he left, she would be lonely if he left, he shouldn't leave his wife's side while she was still injured, and many more. But in the end Rose had breathed a sigh of relief as Draco and Astoria each latched onto one of his arms and escorted him out of St. Mungo's.

_Mr. Blaise Zabini,_

_This is Rose Malfoy. I know you're aware of what transpired between your son, Nathan, and myself on August 27__th__. I just awoke today in St. Mungo's and was informed that his sentence for his crimes will be to suffer the Dementor's Kiss tomorrow at noon. Before this takes place I would like the chance to speak with you. I know we've never met before, but I wanted to have the chance to express to you my sincerest apologies, in person, for everything. I have a few other things I would like to say as well and I think it's important for you to hear them. Please, please, come meet with me before noon tomorrow. _

_Yours Most Humbly,_

_Rose Malfoy_

….

"Rose?" Harry Potter peeked his head into the room before entering. "You wanted to speak with me?"

"Yes. I wanted to speak with you not as my Uncle Harry, but as Auror Potter."

He frowned at her in confusion but gave a jerky nod of acceptance. "Alright, what exactly is this impromptu meeting in regards to, Mrs. Malfoy?"

With a small smile, Rose began, "I was thinking that we could help each other out, Auror Potter…"

….

"_Go_."

"I don't know. Maybe I should stay. You look a bit pale and –"

"I'm _fine_, Scorpius. You need to be there for Norah. Now get your sexy arse into that fireplace and floo over to Azkaban."

With one last worried look at his wife, Scorpius kissed her forehead and disappeared in a swirl of green flames. Not a moment too soon, either. Rose breathed a half-nervous half-relieved sigh as the second her husband disappeared, the door opened and in stepped a completely composed Blaise Zabini.

He didn't look much like his son, but there were a few similarities. Rose knew that Scorpius would disapprove of her plan. He wouldn't let her put herself in danger this way. Not to mention he probably wouldn't have believed her in the first place.

But this was the only thing she could do while being stuck in a hospital bed. Because she was the only person who knew the truth.

"Ms. Weasley," said Blaise with a slight inclination of his head in her direction as he closed the door behind him.

"It's Mrs. Malfoy, actually," she saw how this irked him and his mouth tightened. She barely repressed a smirk. This was going to be easier than she thought.

…

Nathan Zabini hadn't lied to Rose. His father put him under the _Imperious Curse_ and it hadn't lessened at all over the past month and a half aside from the time Nathan spent in Azkaban when the magic-draining wards had made it easier to fight. But it came back in full strength the moment he was released.

Albus and Norah's wedding had been, mostly, Nathan himself. He regretted not being able to walk his sister down the aisle but he couldn't blame her really. He'd been an arse to her most of his life. When they were young he'd been kind and considerate, the way a big brother should be. Did she remember that at all? Or had she been too young?

Nathan sat alone in his cell in Azkaban, waiting for the Ministry officials and the Dementor and Merlin only knew who else. His lips were, metaphorically, sealed shut. The force of the curse placed upon him prevented him from being able to tell anyone the truth. It had been a miracle that he'd been able to tell Rose.

The loop holes in his father's mental instructions combined with the draining effects the prison had on the curse had made it possible. But just barely. And she hadn't believed him. She hadn't taken his suggestion. She'd been his only hope and she had let him down.

This was supposed to be his second chance. After Hogwarts he'd moved out of his parent's house, he'd stopped drinking, and though it was hard, he was starting to become a better man than he'd been before. As he had done many times over his lifetime, he cursed his father again as he waited for a fate worse than death to take him.

He heard the unmistakable creak of metal against metal and glanced up to see his sister, Norah, entering his prison cell with Scorpius Malfoy. Hoping against hope, Nathan couldn't help but ask, "Rose didn't come with you?"

Scorpius's eyes narrowed in disgust. "No. I'm sure you'll be sorry to hear that she's recovering. Your spell nearly killed her, but she's alright now."

Relief mixed with dread rushed through him at these words. Relief – he hadn't killed the girl. Dread – she wasn't coming to his rescue. "Why did you do it?" he almost couldn't bring himself to look into the large brown eyes of his little sister. Younger than him by two and a half minutes.

When he finally managed to lock his gaze with hers he could see the tears starting to form and her lower lip was trembling. How many times had he made her cry? How many times had he been just as big of a bastard as his father? Godric he felt sick. Somewhere deep down he wondered if he didn't deserve this. No, he hadn't done the things they were accusing him of. At least, not on purpose. But he had been a bad person. A Dark wizard.

Changing now was too late. Maybe if he'd been a good person his whole life, right from the very start, they wouldn't have been so quick to believe that he did this of his own accord. Maybe if he hadn't acted so much like his father they would have been able to tell a difference between his actions and his father's actions.

He didn't even _know_ the spell that he used on Rose. He'd never heard of it before until it came from his lips, not from his own volition, but by the presence that was in his head because of that damn curse. His arm had pulled back in a movement he was unfamiliar with and the spell shot forth and hit her like a speeding hippogriff.

Nathan opened his mouth to reply to Norah's question. He wanted to tell her, "_I didn't! I didn't do it! It wasn't me. It was him! He made me do it!_" but all that came out was, "She was in my way."

He saw the last bit of hope leave his sister's eyes. So she'd been hoping he would show some remorse at the last minute. His father wouldn't let him. Norah nodded sternly, as if convincing herself that this punishment was okay with her because he truly was a monster, but Nathan fought harder than ever before to break hold of it. It was useless. He couldn't throw off the Imperius Curse if his life depended on it. And, ironically, it did.

…..

"You must be very upset about Nathan," said Rose without preamble. It was already past 11:30. She didn't have much time.

"He's my son. Of course I am. But I must admit to also being just a bit relieved. People like him should not be allowed to live. His actions were unforgivable," Blaise stood at the foot of her bed, ramrod straight, with no emotions on display.

"I'm sure your relief has nothing to do with the fact that as soon as the Kiss is performed there will be no evidence of your crimes, Mr. Zabini. That is, no evidence except for my own statements."

His eyes narrowed malevolently. "What are you going on about, you silly girl?" he hissed in what was clearly a warning. But Rose didn't care. She was Rose fucking Malfoy and a slime ball like Zabini didn't intimidate her.

"I _know_, Blaise. I know what you did to Nathan and I will not let you get away with it."

"Again, what are you talking about?"

"Your son is about to suffer the Dementor's Kiss for your crimes! He didn't curse me. You did," she accused bravely, being sure to keep her hand under the blanket that was draped over her because clutched tightly in her white-knuckle grip was her wand. Just in case.

"I beg your pardon, _Mrs. Malfoy_," he sneered, "but that spell must have addled your brains. My son is paying for crimes that he committed against you. I've never hurt you."

"But you have and we both know it. Let there be no more pretenses, Blaise. Nathan is under the Imperius Curse and is being controlled by you."

There was a heavy silence between them now and Rose's hand itched to brandish her wand and defend herself. But Blaise was making no move to extract his wand. Instead, he said evenly, "You can't prove it."

"Oh, can't I? The spell he used was Sectumsempra which hasn't been used since the war. It was invented by a wizard who was your Head of House as well as a fellow Death Eater. The night before he came to our home, Nathan was happy about not having to marry Dominique but suddenly the next day he was demanding that she be with him and not embarrass him."

Blaise gave a shrug and forced a look of indifference. "So Nathan has mood swings and picked up a few tricks from the Malfoys. Who, by the way, were much closer to Severus Snape than I ever was."

The implication was clear. He was suggesting that if anyone were to have Nathan under the Imperius Curse it was more likely to be the Malfoys than him. Rose had the urge to scream at him, '_Who the hell do you think I am?'_

Therefore that was exactly what she did. "Who the hell do you think I am? I am Rose Nymphadora Malfoy; daughter of Ron and Hermione Weasley. If you think you can fool me with that shite you're an even bigger idiot than I previously thought and that's saying something. You put your son under the Imperius Curse over a month ago! Everything he has done to get him sent to Azkaban and sentenced with the Dementor's Kiss was done by you! Lie to me again, Blaise Zabini, I fucking _dare _you."

…..

"Mr. Malfoy? Mrs. Potter? It's time," Scorpius and Norah looked up at the Azkaban guard and both shivered violently as a Dementor glided into the cell behind the guard. Nathan didn't move a muscle. He couldn't. His father had given him a strict command to not make a scene and accept his punishment stoically.

….

"All you have, you stupid child, is a number of unfounded accusations! What did you hope to accomplish by inviting me here today? Did you expect me to turn myself into the Aurors? Feel guilty for what I've done and run crying to Azkaban to get my son off the hook? I don't think so."

"All I wanted," said Rose steadily, her insides quivering with nerves. "Was to have my suspicions confirmed. I am, after all, my mother's daughter, and I do so love hearing that I was right. More than that, I'm sure you're desperate to own up to your own accomplishments. Brilliant move to get someone else to do your dirty work."

Blaise Zabini couldn't help but smirk just a little bit. She was right about that. "I thought so as well. Norah left and was marrying that Potter bastard. Then Nathan came in and was starting to become as big of a blood traitor as his sister. I had to do something to salvage at least one of my children. To make sure that at least one of them didn't shame the name of Zabini."

"So you did it. You Imperiused him. You forced him to come to my flat that night and beat me up for Norah's location. You forced him to go to her flat and try to kidnap her. You forced him to let the Aurors find him and take the blame. You made it impossible for him to tell anyone the truth. Then, once he was free of Azkaban, and free of the marriage law, you despised the idea of a Weasley leaving him at the altar so-to-speak so you were going to seek revenge. You wanted him to find Dominique Weasley and make her either marry him or suffer for refusing him. You, through your son, were the one who used _Sectumsempra _on me."

There was another lengthy pause and Rose could feel her heart beating in her throat. Had she gone too far? Would he attack her? Try to kill her before she could spread this truth throughout the whole of the wizarding community?

Instead he smiled broadly. "Right on all counts. It seems you are your mother's daughter after all. I commend you for figuring it all out. But nobody will believe you. I'll give the option right now, Rose; I can Obliviate it from your memory or I can kill you to silence you. Which will it be?"

…..

"I'm sorry," Norah whispered to her brother, feeling as if this was all her fault. As if she could have somehow made him into a better person if she had tried just a little bit harder or been just a little bit better of an example for him. But nothing could help Nathan Zabini now.

The Dementor glided forward and Nathan tilted his head up, almost welcoming the kiss. A bony fleshy hand came from the hooded figure and he reached up to the brim of his hood, pulling it back so he could administer his most feared gift.

….

"Go to hell, Zabini!" Rose whipped her wand up and barely had time to deflect the spell shot her way, a jet of purple light, before hitting him with a spell of her own as an entire team of Aurors, headed by her Uncle Harry, flooded the room and pinned Blaise to the floor.

"Did you get that?" Rose asked anxiously as she scrambled to climb out of the bed.

"Yes," Harry assured her, "we heard every word."

….

"STOP!" Norah, Scorpius, the Azkaban guard, and Nathan all glanced up to see Auror Teddy Lupin barge into the room. "He got it!" he cried happily with a fist-pump. "Harry got Zabini's confession!"

As if on cue, the curse that had been plaguing Nathan for so long was lifted. With a deep intake of air he flung himself back, away from the Dementor who was much too close for comfort, and began yelling. "It wasn't me! I didn't do it! I've been under the Imperius Curse!"


End file.
